Unfocused paradox
by HOPEHATE07
Summary: Ichigo had lost the battle. He had failed to do what he was meant to do. All was lost and someone decided that it was time for a change that nobody deserved but needed. Time Travel. But can Ichigo go through the process of seeing the once dead again? Will everyone feel the same about THIS Ichigo, who knows everything about them but they don't? How long can he hide his identity?
1. Chapter 1

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

* * *

_Darkness._

_That was all that was visible if you looked at the sky. It wasn't because it was night. This dark sky had always been there since 9 years._

_9 Years of war._

_The brave soldier held his sword in front of his eyes. Noticing the cracks in the glimmering metal of hope. And he then turned around to meet the battle screams of the enemy._

_He swung the sword, hoping it would not break, just like how his broken soul had._

* * *

"Ichigo?"

Ichigo was bought out of his thoughts as he stopped staring at the sky and focused on the voice that had called him.

With a tire full sigh, Ichigo walked over to the said man as he put back his swords into his sheath.

Kisuke looked at Ichigo with admiration and pity. The boy he had seen grow beyond his expectations for 13 years. The boy who had earned a power so great that mighty men will fall at his feet. The boy who had helped soul society so much that nobody could thank him enough even if they had put their life in front of him.

Yet this boy was broken beyond repair.

"What is it Kisuke?" Ichigo asked as he tried to maintain his irritating tone which he had faked since the last few years.

"Aizen. . .Yhwach. . .I don't know what that is but he is awake. But we should meet Lisa first" Kisuke said as he pointed at the 'thing' with his right arm, his left being gone a year ago along with his cane, now replaced with a fake arm. That was when he finally considered using a normal sheath.

Then he pointed at the dull green tent that lied admist the rubble that was once known as the foundation of soul society.

Aizen-Yhwach. They had been calling him that because they couldn't put a finger on what they would call him.

When Aizen was 'released' from his prison, he had first decided to decieve everyone (soul society) into thinking that he was on their side, that he was going to protect them along with Ichigo.

But when Ichigo was hurt enough, he combined Yhwach with himself using the Hogyōku that was still embedded in him.

The Hogyōku in want of a new master decided to use Yhwach but Yhwach who had made a deal with Aizen decided to change some plans.

They fused.

The Hogyōku, Aizen and Yhwach fused. The three most powerful beings fused and created something that could be known as 'death' itself.

That was when the war took a turning point.

Everyone died in the 9 year long war. And Ichigo was just 18 when he has rushed into it. Now him being 27 did change a lot of things, but not his desire to protect.

Aiwach was so much stronger than everyone that it was nearly impossible for even Genriyusai Yamamoto to see his flash steps.

Aiwach had even halfway become the soul king himself.

Just like Ichigo, Aiwach had broken the boundary between Shinigami, Hollow and Quincy.

Ichigo had tried so much to power up and kill 'him' before he kills anymore but he failed.

The only ones left alive right now were Ichigo, Kisuke, Lisa and Aiwach.

And it pained Ichigo that he ended up being the useless trash he thought he was.

"Ichigo. . ." Lisa called out weakly and Ichigo again started walking.

Ichigo walked into the tent and the strong smell of blood hit him instantly.

He glanced at the puke-bucket and saw nothing but blood.

Ichigo turned to look at Lisa who was lying on the makeshift bed and his eyes softened.

'So Kisuke knew. . .' Ichigo thought as he looked back to see that the guy was waiting outside the tent.

Kisuke knew she was going to die so he stayed outside.

Lisa's weak posture tried to sit up on bed but Ichigo quickly walked over and with a light push at her shoulders he made her lie down.

He then wiped some of the blood vomit on Lisa's chin with the end of his shihakusho sleeves.

"Stay down Lisa, you have already lost enough blood" Ichigo said as he sat on a small wooden stool next to the bed and started removing the bandages around Lisa's exposed waist.

He grimaced as soon as the bandages were off.

Bood poisoning.

Not that this was the first time he had seen or dealt with it, but it was never a good sight.

Lisa stared at Ichigo's head, waiting for him to look at her once.

Ichigo never did. He picked out a fresh roll of bandage and some cleaning medicine from a small table on his left and started cleaning her wound.

But when he saw that the yellowness wasn't fading, he knew what was going to happen next.

'This requires a surgery. . .' Ichigo thought.

"I am going to have to sedate you. You need a surgery and i think i can try to do it. Damn, what wouldn't i give to have Unohana taicho right now" Ichigo said with a small smile.

"Ichigo you know that i am-"

"But i will save you" Ichigo said as he did not want her to continue the statement and took out some surgery equipment from a box on his right.

"Ichigo-"

"I said i can do it. You don't need to wo-"

Before Ichigo could complete, a pale yellow and sweaty hand reached out to Ichigo's right hand and he froze.

"Ichigo, it's okay to let go" Lisa's calm yet wavering voice called out.

"No, I am not letting you go. I promised Captain Shunsui that i would protect you" Ichigo said as his other hand crushed the roll of gauze. The obvious truth had finally started to weigh down on him.

"And this is protecting me Ichigo. I am in so much pain, I don't want it anymore. I want this to end" Lisa said as she squeezed Ichigo's hand.

"Orihime had said the same thing. . ."

"And your wife died peacefully Ichigo"

"But i cannot do the same to everyone-"

"Ichigo, there is nobody left" Lisa interjected.

Ichigo closed his eyes tightly at the statement.

Sensing her own harshness, Lisa continued more calmly.

"Ichigo i want to be with my captain and for the first time I don't want to yell at him for drinking. I want to wear contacts instead of my glasses. I want to eat that rice cake Ukitake san made once more. I want to hear Yamamoto yell at Captain Zaraki. . .i want to do so many things with the people that are on the other side. . .and the only way to do this would be to let go. . . you have done so much for soul society. . . you have tried to protect each and every person but now it's time to relax Ichigo. . ."

"But i h-have done nothing! Everyone is dead and i couldn't even protect you or Ru-Rukia from that last attack and i have been completely usele-"

"Ichigo, you have done so much. You don't realise it yet but what you have done is more than enough. For once Ichigo, protect yourself" Lisa said as a small smile graced her face as Ichigo dropped the gauze.

After a few minutes Ichigo held Lisa's hand firmly as he felt her pulse fade. As if he didn't want to let go of that smallest beat of her pulse.

"How can i repay you?" Ichigo's small voice wavered slightly as he asked that.

"You already have Ichigo" Lisa said in her last breaths as Ichigo finally looked at Lisa as she smiled at him and her hand loosened around his own.

A few minutes passed as Ichigo continued to stare at Lisa's face that had a calm wash over it.

Ichigo set Lisa's now limp hand beside her and abruptly got up.

He then took out Lisa's lieutenant batch from his arm. When Lisa had got hurt the first time, She had insisted that he should wear his own own lieutenant batch along with Lisa's. Just in case he lost his, which was stupid cause Ichigo would never lose a thing that might be this important to him. But considering how he had already lost so many things that were important to him and of course, his friend's condition, he agreed without any further argument.

He walked out the tent, now wearing only his batch as he left Lisa's behind, right beside her and without even noticing Kisuke that was standing outside, he started to walk towards where Aiwach was.

Kisuke stared at Ichigo's back for few seconds before he continued to walk behind Ichigo.

'He didn't cry. . .' Kisuke thought grimly.

It didn't even take the both of them a minute to reach where Aiwach's half dead body lied.

Ichigo stared down at the man who had mercilessly killed each and every person he ever loved. He wanted to smash the body into pieces.

But that wasn't what he was meant to do.

Looking at the half detached form which was engraved on Aiwach's body by Ichigo himself, it didn't look like Aiwach was going to last long.

But he had lasted in this very form for the last two days.

Ichigo looked at Kisuke with a questioning look who just shook his head, clearly saying that Aiwach was going to die soon.

"Ah Kurosaki Ichigo, so you have come to finally kill me off?" Aiwach said in Aizen's voice with a smirk.

"Don't speak Aizen, your body is already half dead. Or Yhwach's body is already half dead. I don't know what you are anymore. At least die without opening that damn mouth of yours" Ichigo said with his normal scowl as he sat on the ground beside the half god.

"Well if this is what i can do to repay you so be it, i won't speak" Aiwach said.

"Repay me? What are you tal-"

"The only time i had come this close to death was when we had fought earlier and you had used Mugetsu. Yet this time it seems more close to death than unconsciousness. Now that i look at it from the victim's point of view, it does seem like i was a bit too harsh" Aizen's voice in Aiwach said as he continued to stare at the sky while blood formed a pool around his body.

Ichigo's left arm crushed a small stone that was lying beside him as anger boiled within him, but he never let it show.

But it didn't go unnoticed by Kisuke.

"Anger. I have felt it before. When my race was being wiped out, just how yours has right now. But i guess being a hybrid, you must feel a mix of emotions. I don't know how to say this but it would have been nice if all of this had never happened" Yhwach in Aiwach said.

They were blabbering, they would lose their mind soon. Aiwach that is.

Ichigo just sighed and looked at Kisuke who understood in an instant.

Kisuke was going to ask Aiwach to remove the Hogyōku from himself before he dies but was interrupted as Aiwach raised an fist while never trying to sit up.

Ichigo's and Kisuke's hands went directly towards the hilt of their swords at such abrupt moment and Aiwach chuckled.

"I see, so the damage i have done is beyond repair. But don't fret as i am planning to do something else for a change" Aiwach said in an overlapping voice of both Aizen and Yhwach.

Ichigo and Kisuke relaxed but their hands never left their hilts.

Aiwach opened his fist of the arm he had raised, to reveal the Hogyōku itself.

"What are you doing?" Kisuke asked as he backed away a few steps.

"Don't worry. You came here for taking it, so why are you running away from it?" Aiwach said.

Ichigo thought for a second and then stepped forward and picked up the black orb of doom from Aiwach's hand.

Ichigo felt the Hogyōku wanting to climb into his heart and find his deepest desires, but he turned it away easily.

Because of being fused with two evil beings, the Hogyōku was now tainted and if a opposing energy doesn't desire to accept it, then it would be easy to turn it away.

If the Hogyōku had been in its previous form, then it would have easily reached Ichigo's heart.

Nobody said a word as Ichigo took the marble and put it into a small brown leather pocket that was hanging from his obi.

"Now Kurosaki Ichigo, i will reveal to you the last part of my plan" Aizen's voice said.

"Your plan isn't over?" Ichigo asked in a bored tone.

'Fake tones and expression. . .What have i done with this boy?' Kisuke thought.

"You see, when the Hogyōku was embedded in me, i was at such a level of power, that it was impossible for me to think rationally. But as the man i was, planning was my forte. Even though i KNEW i would not fail or i would NEVER desire for the good of others, i still had a plan at the back of my mind for a scenario like this" Aizen's voice said.

"You knew there was a possibility that Ichigo might defeat you even when you, Hogyōku and Yhwach might be fused?" Kisuke concluded.

"Precisely, so as i wa- agh!" Aiwach said as he suddenly felt short of breath.

Aiwach tried to compose himself as the pain was killing him from inside out.

Ichigo never thought he would see Aizen die like this again.

Yeah it was Aiwach, but Yhwach was inside Aizen's body. It was just one of the complexities of fusing. So it basically looked like Aizen with Yhwach's power.

"So as you can see, i don't have much time. Kurosaki Ichigo you do remember the Royal Guards right? What i mean is Ichibē, Kirinji and-"

"Yes i do" Ichigo interrupted.

"Didn't they grant you the Ōken?"

Ichigo and Kisuke's shoulders tensed up. Questions started to arise in their minds, making them wonder if this was just another one of his tricks.

But sensing no other openings, Ichigo said,

"Yeah"

Kisuke slightly glanced at Ichigo but as soon as he saw the confidence in Ichigo's eyes, he knew it was going to be okay.

"So just like the Royal Guard, your flesh and bones and every other aspect is now consisting of the Ōken? Or should i say made of Ōken?" Aiwach asked

"Well at first they had only made my clothes using a bit of Ōken, but later they told me that the soul king had decided to make me the 'Ōken itself' just like Ichibē and the othe-"

"Just tell me if you are a Royal Guard or not?"

Ichigo looked into Aiwach's eyes as he tried to catch the trick but he found none.

"Yes, I am one of the members of the Royal Guard" Ichigo firmly declared as he crossed his arms.

"Then i am going to tell you about a way with which you can win this all back. Everything you have lost" Aiwach said.

After what Aiwach said it just took 10 seconds for Ichigo to lose his composure.

"Why in the world do you keep fucking with me?! Save everyone that YOU have killed?! Why would you say something that isn't possible?! Haven't you fucking done enough?! Why can't you just die already?! Why do you-" Ichigo snapped but was stopped by a hand on his shoulders.

Ichigo looked behind to see Kisuke standing there with a serious expression on his face.

'So this is. . . possible?' Was Ichigo's first thought.

Ichigo looked at Aiwach and narrowed his eyes harshly as if he wanted Aiwach to speak now or Aiwach wouldn't live for the few minutes that were left for him to live.

"The Ōken you have in you. . .or from which you are MADE of, is used to travel to the King's realm, which is another dimension that was too high up into the sky. But it can't just be used to travel to that one dimension" Aiwach said.

"What do you mean by 'that one' ?" Kisuke asked.

"When i wanted to create the Ōken by destroying Kakura town, i had studied it's each and every aspect. And it was just impossible for a thing with so much power to only be the key to one dimension, it can be used to travel to different ones"

"So you are proposing that there is another dimension where everyone isn't destroyed by you?" Ichigo asked bitterly.

"No. A different dimension doesn't mean that the major things will change. This war was a major change in the history of Soul Society.There will be only some minor dissimilarities"

"So what's the use of this?" Kisuke asked with a tired sigh as he began to lose hope again.

"That's where the Hogyōku comes in, doesn't it?" Ichigo asked flatly as he now looked at the ground.

Kisuke's eyes widened as the realisation of what Aiwach was proposing finally came down on him like a river of rocks.

"A-Are you proposing ti-time travel into a dif-diffrent dimension?" Kisuke asked as he used his fame arm to remove his hat in surprise.

"Yes and No. To be honest time travel isn't possible, it's just different dimensions with the things occuring at different times. In another dimension the Soul Society might be destroyed by now along with it's Kurosaki Ichigo in it, for the other dimensions the Soul Society must not even exist till now or for some, the captain Aizen they know, hasn't gone rogue till now. So i have roamed different dimensions cause i had the Hogyōku and i was half soul king and i have found a suitable dimension for Kurosaki Ichigo" Aiwach said as he took in sharp breaths.

"Well for someone from this dimension it would still be time travel. . ." Ichigo whispered under his breath.

"So you are telling me that you wandered into different dimensions just because you thought i might need it. Annddddd you want me to believe you?" Ichigo asked in dry sarcasm.

"Believe it or not but even though i was in that monstrous form of mine, i still had a bit of humanity left in me. And i created the joint that was needed to travel into another dimension" Aiwach said with the iconic Aizen smirk everyone knew.

Ichigo wanted to punch the man right there. Humanity and Aiwach haven't marched together for a single second of the last 9 years.

Kisuke sensing the killing intent Ichigo was giving off, decided to continue with the questions.

"So you have made a tool that joins a being possessing Ōken to the Hogyōku and then let's it travel into another dimension. So what about this one? There is no way to bring this one back to life?" Kisuke asked.

"No there isn't" Aiwach said cause there was no way to sugar coat it.

Kisuke and Ichigo looked at the ground grimly as the thought of everyone they knew being finally gone.

"But don't fret. You can save all the others of that dimension from us" Aiwach's overlapped voice said.

Ichigo and Kisuke shared a look.

Kisuke's face telling that Ichigo shouldn't do this.

Ichigo's eyes telling that he has no choice.

"Ichigo. . . you won't be able to handle this" Kisuke said.

"But i am stronger now. If that's the case then i will train to get more strong and then i will go back and fix this-"

"I meant mentally Ichigo. You are very strong physically and spiritually but you won't be able to handle seeing everyone again Ichigo"

"But Kisuke-"

"You stop this drama this instant Kurosaki Ichigo" Kisuke said strictly as he drew back his hat to show Ichigo how serious he was.

Ichigo flinched. This wasn't the first time Kisuke had yelled at him but it was the first time Kisuke was serious about it.

Kisuke backed away and looked at Aiwach and said,

"So this joint you are taking about. . .It must be at this hidden lab of yours which you have hidden under the rubbles of the Sōkyoku Hill?"

"I guess i am not as intelligent as i thought i was if you have known where my lab was all this time" Aiwach said as his eyelids slowly started to close.

"Yeah but all the things inside were pretty useless. . ." Kisuke added.

"And you have entered it as well" Aiwach added weakly.

"Sleep Aiwach. . . It's your time now" Ichigo said.

"Why are you nice to us Kurosaki Ichigo? After all we have done?"Aiwach asked.

"Well if I tourtured people when they are obviously dying then there won't be any difference between you and me"

"I see...If you are so kind then will you forgive me?" Aiwach asked.

Ichigo felt Aiwach's reiatsu fading as he asked that.

"I usually forgive and forget. . .but this time i can only forgive" Ichigo said grimly.

"Half truths hurt Kurosaki Ichigo, not me but you. . ." Aiwach said as he finally died with the typical maniac smirk still on his face.

"Well i fucking hate you but everyone deserves to die peacefully"

Ichigo sat there, kneeling beside the being that had cost him so much that he would like to kill the man again and again.

"Ichigo. . ." Kisuke said as if he gestured Ichigo to get up.

Ichigo got up and started walking towards the direction Kisuke knew well enough.

"You are going towards the Sōkyoku hill aren't you?" Kisuke asked but Ichigo didn't reply and flashstepped away.

Kisuke sighed and followed silently.

* * *

Ichigo saw that the door to the underground lab was beneath some rubble.

"Hadō: 31 Sōkatsui" Ichigo said and a blue ball of light fired from Ichigo's right palm and struck the ground.

The big rocks cleared up and revealed a steel door.

"We would have never known about his lab if Renji hadn't destroyed the Sōkyoku Hill during his fight" Kisuke said as he landed bedside Ichigo.

"Yeah. . .That guy had gotten hella stronger if i compare it to the first time we met. It would have been like i was comparing a god to a dog" Ichigo said with a small smile but his eyes were as dull as ever.

Kisuke stepped forward and held onto the steel handle of the door. He opened it and a gush of air exited the lab.

"That's a lot of stairs" Ichigo said as he looked down into the dark pit while only the first few steps were visible.

"Let's go" Ichigo said as he started walking while he kept a half released hadō in his hand to provide light.

It took them 10 mins to reach down.

"Aiwach probably had lights in this whole route but i guess it died somewhere in between the war" Kisuke said as he tried to flick the light switch that was beside them on a wall.

So they continued to use Kidō for lighting up the room.

"Most of the things here are major weapons that would be useless without electricity or a reiatsu source" Ichigo said.

"Ichigo, i found it" Kisuke said out of nowhere.

Ichigo quickly walked over to where Kisuke was.

Kisuke was standing at one of the corners of the lab. It was dark so Ichigo crouched and bought his hand closer to the corner and noticed a small cupboard in the right wall of the corner. It was open.

Ichigo picked out the instrument with his Kidō free hand and stood up and examined the 'Joint' as Aizen called it.

"I-It looks like the hilt of a Zanpaktō?" Ichigo said unsurely.

The covering around the handle was yellow and purple in colour. And the cap and guard of the hilt were golden. The blade collar was black. But there wasn't a blade.

"Where is the blade?" Ichigo asked as he gave the hilt to Kisuke.

Kisuke looked at Ichigo as if he was asking "Are you serious?"

"What? I am not good at such stuff and you know it" Ichigo said with a light scowl.

"The Hōgyoku is the blade while the weilder will be the one having the Ōken in them" Kisuke explained as he took the hilt from Ichigo's hands.

"How can the Hōgyoku be the blade? It's a sphere" Ichigo said as he took out the orb from his leather pouch.

Kisuke stopped using his other hand for Kidō and Ichigo just put energy into his own Kidō.

Then Kisuke took the Hōgyoku from Ichigo's other hand.

He bought the Hōgyoku and the hilt near his eyes but his arms were stretched as he kept them a safe distance away. His hands made a right angle with his body.

Then slowly, Kisuke bought the Hōgyoku slowly near to the hilt. Just when the Hōgyoku was 3 inches away from the blade collar, the blade collar suddenly melted and then turned into a bowl like shape while the golder guard which was rectangular turned into a circle.

There was a blast of wind and light so Ichigo and Kisuke shut their eyes tight.

Then everything calmed down after a few seconds.

Kisuke then held the hilt that had the now returned to it's earlier form of rectangular black guard and the Hogyōku.

Kisuke had stopped trying to join them just in time.

"And so what does it do if we had embedded the Hogyōku?" Ichigo asked hoping that wasn't it.

"Well the Hōgyoku has some energy left it into. That 'some' is alot but it's less for Time travel, so it can only send us back once" Kisuke said.

"It's not time travel, it's dimensional travel" Ichigo said proudly at his scientific skills.

"Don't mug up what Aiwach said. What he said and meant was just to confuse us. He just used dimension as another word for time. Instead of time slots he said dimensional slots, it's the same. Cause you won't find another dimension with same time as ours" Kisuke said.

Ichigo who didn't understand much decided to jump into another topic.

"But didn't he say that as soon as we get the peices together then we will time travel? So how do we decide how far back both of us would go? This thing doesn't have a dial does it?" Ichigo asked.

"The amount of time we will travel will depend on the wilder's will and the amount of energy thar is left in the Hogyōku. Well i am not the one with Ōken here"

"So i will have to hold the hilt and the Hogyōku in their joined form while you hold onto me so that we can go back?"

"Yes, you will hold the hilt but i cannot cause i don't have the Ōken"

Kisuke looked at Ichigo with a grim expression and it was at that moment Ichigo knew.

"You won't be able to come with me?"

"Look Ichigo it's impossible if i don't have the Ōke-"

"But we can figure something out! W-we will try to infuse you with something or some weird shit Mayuri would have d-done or we can modify this hilt-"

"Ichigo"

Ichigo looked up to see Kisuke but his vision was blurred.

'Wait. . .No i won't cry, i cannot cry, I-' Ichigo thought as he vigorously wiped his eyes.

"Ichigo, deep inside you realise it too"

"But it's not how this shou-"

"But it's going to be okay since you won't be going" Kisuke added.

Ichigo paused.

"What?"

"You think i am going to send you into the past just because i can? It's not going to happen" Kisuke said as he gave the hilt and the Hogyōku to Ichigo as he started to walk towards the exit.

Ichigo quickly put the items in his pouch and without waisting another second he started walking so he could catch up to Kisuke.

"But Kisuke this is our only chance to save everyone! We can get every person back. . . including Yourichi" Ichigo said as he saw Kisuke pause in his tracks.

Ichigo knew he had struck a chord that wasn't supposed to be struck but he was ready to do anything to save everyone.

"And not only Yourichi. . .I can save Orihime too" Ichigo added as he looked at his feet, not wanting to look at Kisuke if he turned around.

"Ichigo, you aren't powerful enough to go back-"

"Then i will get stronger"

"I meant mentally. You may not go insane or something like that but seeing the people that once died makes you emotional Ichigo. That is something not everyone can handle and obviously something we don't need when we need to have our minds straight. Trust me, I know" Kisuke said as he mentioned about that time during the war when everyone thought Yourichi was dead and a year later she shows up again saying she has found another alternative for killing Aiwach.

Which of course did not work.

"And when you go back, you will have to refrain from killing Aizen or Yhwach on spot Ichigo. You will have to find the perfect time to attack them. You will have to find someone you can trust so that you can tell them you have time travelled. And doing even that would be almost impossible. And people in the past won't recognise you, that will hurt you more than you can imagine. And nobody would trust you either" Kisuke added.

"Then i will be patient, i will make a plan once i reach there. And i will build my bonds again and make everyone trust me again" Ichigo said without flinching.

Ichigo didn't want to behave like a brat who didn't obey anything. He understood each and every word Kisuke was telling him but he had to go back. . .he HAS to fix everything.

"Kisuke, I have to do this" Ichigo finally declared.

Kisuke turned to look at Ichigo. He looked into his eyes and he noticed they were the same ones that Ichigo held when he had decided to save Rukia from Soul Society.

And therefore he also knew that there was no stopping Ichigo.

"Ichigo, do you know what you are getting yourself into?" Kisuke asked one final time.

"Kisuke, i have to do this. There is no other less insane way than this" Ichigo said as he gripped harder at the hilt of his own sword.

"Okay then i will make the necessary changes required to make the both of us go back" Kisuke said as he finally let go of his serious demeanor, pulled his hat down a bit and smirked.

Ichigo smiled at Kisuke but then Kisuke said,

"But you have to talk to your Zanpaktōs first. . . before leaving that is"

"Yeah i will do that. They would probably yell at me for not talking to them for so long" Ichigo said as he scratched his head sheepishly.

"How long has it been exactly?"

"It's been a. . . year"

"Well good luck with that. Now let's get out of this lab"

This time they decided to flash step on the stairs and they were out in a second.

"And there are some things i must tell you about time travel before you go. Not that important cause i am coming with you but still required" Kisuke said and Ichigo just nodded.

They then continued to walk towards the tents when Kisuke halted midway.

"What's wrong?" Ichigo asked as he stared at Kisuke's head and waited for him to turn around.

Kisuke turned around rapidly while his eyes were being so wide that Ichigo thought they might pop out.

"What's wrong Kisuke? What's up with that freaky expression?"

"Ichigo don't you feel the Hogyōku's power?"

"Now that you say it. . .yeah i kinda do"

"Ichigo, i am going to have to ask you to not move an inch and answer me one question. Remember, I don't want you to move at all" Kisuke said as he kept one palm on his Zanpaktō while the other pointing towards Ichigo.

"Okay, ask away" Ichigo said without moving an inch.

"Where did you keep that hilt of the sword and the Hogyōku?"

"Oh i kept them together in my pouch. . .oh wait" Ichigo replied as he soon had the same expression Kisuke had.

Suddenly the air around Ichigo started fluctuating. Images of Ichigo two steps behind and then being back at the same place started reoccurring. The sky started to go from dark to blue again and again. Ichigo's expression kept changing from a smile to that same broken one.

And then he was gone.

As if he disappeared with the wind.

Kisuke looked at the spot where once Ichigo stood.

"You can never take a simple route can you?" Kisuke said with a sigh.

Suddenly the world around him started to shake and Kisuke covered his eyes with his fake arm as he took out Benihimē.

Everything started to fold into itself, as if bending space-time itself.

"The other thing I wanted to tell you Ichigo about time travel was. . .The second you go back, time changes and the reality which you once knew, won't be able to exist anymore" Kisuke whispered as the folds had started to come closer to him.

"And i am not the one who would die from such a pitiful cause as changing of reality. I would rather die by my own hands while Benihimē reads me" Kisuke said as he held the sword in from of his stomach.

In his mind, his Zanpaktō provided reassurance that this was the right choice.

Kisuke stared at the tents which were at a distance one last time before they folded into themselves too.

Then he gave one last glance to his reflection on his sword and smirking, before thrusting it towards his stomach.

Hence Urahara Kisuke commited Seppuku while the world around him vanished from existence.

* * *

_And the cracked metal broke as the soldier swung it onto the enemy._

_It's pieces__ scattering across the battlefield, where the corpses of his fellow soldiers lied._

_And another__ metal pierced the soldier's skin._

_But it__ never left him in fear or agony or the pain of loosing._

_As__ there was nobody left to save._

* * *

**Writer of "Avenging the souls lost" here! (Those who don't know, " Avenging the souls lost" is a MARVEL and BLEACH crossover) Yeah i know I haven't completed that. . .BUT i will. And so as to achieve that, i will only write a chapter of "Unfocused Paradox" once a month. Yeah i know it's lame but i am writing TWO fics together people, so uhh Please? And yes, this is about time travel if you didn't understand the scinency shit i had written up. This is mostly going to be a hurt Comfort pain action drama and actually. . .I haven't thought about what THIS is particularly, but you get the idea right? Anyways,****PEACE! LOT'S OF LOVE!****P.S. I will complete the next chapter for "Avenging the souls" lost in the next few days! Stay tuned!****P.P.S. Please review if you don't like OR like anything!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

* * *

Force.

That was all Ichigo felt all over his body.

A force so immense that it felt as if each and every atom in his body was being teared apart and being rejoined.

But weirdly enough he still had his consciousness intact.

He noticed that he was falling through a pitch black void. Not a single ray of light was visible. He still felt the hilt of the sword in his hand. He tried to let go of it but it seemed like it was attached to his palm.

He tried looking at his hands but all he saw was darkness.

He didn't know how long it had been since he was falling in this void.

But he assumed he had been falling for 30 mins.

**(Seriously I cannot hold back and not put some Marvel references into this)**

Then he remembered Kisuke.

"I left without him. What will he do there? All alone? I guess I will have to find a way to go back and save him. . ."

Suddenly he saw light. The hilt in his palm had been hit by some sort of light.

No, not only the hilt. His whole back was being hit by something warm.

He tried to turn around with great effort, to see from where the light was coming from. He knew that if he turned now, he might fall face first rather than his back, which was more safer. But something told him that it would be a bit more time until the ground even came near.

So he turned.

Below him was a lake that extended into the unknown. It could have been called a ocean but a ocean was never this calm and serene.

And there were some blurry images that were inside the water, and they were the source of the light.

As he got closer and closer, he took a diving position while some ripples started to form on the glowing water.

The images got clearer and soon Ichigo noticed that the images were nothing but memories of his past.

But before Ichigo could do anything, he fell into the water.

Just like the water in his inner world, he was able to breathe in it. But it still choked him. The thought of seeing those painful memories choked him and he couldn't do anything about it.

Ichigo saw the happy times pass by. He saw him and Rukia meeting for the first time. He saw him and Uryu arguing over nothing. He saw Renji drinking away the bar with Rangiku. He saw the moment when he was made the second lieutenant of Squad 8 and he remembered Lisa pouting in the corner for having to deal with a partner as she scolded Shunsui and asked him if she wasn't enough. He saw his and Orihime's first kiss. He saw Kisuke going crazy with his experiments while Yoruichi scolded him. He saw Yuzu cooking food for everyone while Karin beat up some boys at the corner. He saw his dad hanging off his mother's poster as he fake cried. He saw Yamamoto scolding Byakuya and Kenpachi again for losing their coats. He saw everything he loved in a flash.

Then it was all gone.

That was when it all turned red.

He saw Aiwach torturing his sisters while he was chained back. He saw the deaths of all of the people who were important to him; his captain, his partner, his wife, his sisters, Rukia, Uryu, Renji, Keigo, Mizuiro, Tatsuki, Chad, Yoruichi. . . almost everyone. He felt himself trying to move forward and save everyone. He tried to enter the broken images but failed miserably, just how he had back then.

The images kept changing and changing, becoming more vivid. And he didn't want to go into the details or his time awake will turn into a nightmare, as if it wasn't right now.

He hated this water. He hated the memories it was showing. And Ichigo yelled in pain for all it was worth.

Then suddenly he fell out through the water and continued falling on his back again. Into the black void, darkness surrounding him. His body cold and hungry for warmth.

He felt his lungs working again as he got farther from the lake of memories. The water going away from his line of sight, leaving him numb.

Then suddenly Kami thought that the mental pain wasn't enough and Ichigo felt his whole body tear apart again. Ichigo held onto the hilt tightly as he felt like it was suddenly not stuck to his palm anymore. He then felt his body burning but not seeing a single streak of flame. He yelled and yelled knowing it wasn't going to stop.

Until it was suddenly gone.

'What?' Ichigo thought.

Everything stopped. He wasn't falling anymore. He wasn't being teared apart. Hel wasn't burning anymore. All of it had just stopped.

He felt like he was lying on the ground. . .on grass?

He could hear the sounds of cars blowing their horns and speeding on the roads even on such a rainy day.

Rain.

Ichigo hated the rain. Not only because his clothes got wet or it was gloomy when it rained. It had rained when his mother had died. It had rained when Rukia had died. It had rained when Shunsui had died while trying to save his sisters. It had rained when Yoruichi had died. It had rained when Ginjo had betrayed him. It had rained when he got to know about his fucked up past from his dad.

All in all, rain wasn't his best friend.

Ichigo squeezed the grass with one of his hands as the flashbacks didn't go away. His mind kept going through different scenarios of what he could have done that might have led to all of them, his friends being saved.

Deciding that laying there wasn't going to give him any answers as to where he was or WHEN he was, Ichigo opened his eyes.

The cloudy sky was what came into his view first. The cold water dripping on his face as the clouds rumbled.

The dark sky made him think, just for a second, that be hadn't gone back.

As he sat up, he saw that he was near a river that seemed too awfully similar.

Karakura River.

Ichigo quickly got up and jumped up into the sky and then stood in midair.

He got a pretty clear view of the city that wasn't destroyed or wasn't in a threatening situation in any way.

He gave out a big sigh as he rested both of his palms on his knees and laughed a bit at the situation.

"I-I really came back. . .I can save them this t-time "

"-what are you going to cook tonight?" A kid's voice asked happily.

Ichigo's head shot up as water dripping from his hair got a bit into his eyes and he looked around frantically. He could recognise that voice anywhere.

Who won't be able to recognise their own voice?

Ichigo then face palmed at his stupidity. Even if he heard that voice, the kid won't be able to stand up to where Ichigo was standing, he must look for him at ground level.

Ichigo jumped down on the road. This was a near the train bridge. For a normal person, fighting goons below the bridge was the worst thing that could have happened to them. But to Ichigo, it was one of those places where he had his safest fights.

His motto? It's better to fight goons than half god's or demons.

He tried to find his kid self. He wondered what age he was.

"But I don't want to~" Young Ichigo's voice said.

Ichigo quickly stopped staring at the train bridge and then looked at his right.

"N-No way" Ichigo said as his voice wavered.

Standing in the middle of the road were Masaki and 9 year old Ichigo who were walking down the road while Masaki held the all too familiar umbrella and young Ichigo wore the same yellow rain coat.

Ichigo quickly looked back at the train bridge and looks at the digital sign board on one of it's poles.

June 17th.

'Oh no'

"Wait i will save you!" Young Ichigo's voice boomed.

Ichigo looked back at the scene and saw his younger self running towards a girl that Ichigo clearly knew was a illusion formed by the 'Grand Fisher'.

'No no no no no-'

Then he looked back at Masaki who was holding her arms up in a position that was used to release a arrow. But the look on her face told that she has realised that she isn't able to form a bow.

Then he watches her drop that stance and just jump over the small fence and run towards his younger self.

'She is thinking Blut Vene would work?!' Ichigo thought as he started running towards the scene.

"Are you really willing to change the past or the future?" A voice asked.

Ichigo paused in his tracks and glanced back.

'It can't be-'

Standing there was Ichibē Hyōsube.

"Ich-Ichibē san?" Ichigo's voice faltered.

Ichibē raised one of his eyebrows and said,

"So you must be from the future cause i don't know who you are but you seem to be referring to me with my first name"

Ichibē took in the boy's appearance. He was wearing a standard black shihakusho. But he had a white armour which formed an 'X' shape on his chest. And he was wearing a white hayori tied around his waist using a red Obi.

And he also had a squad 8 lieutenant's batch around his left arm.

**(Basically TYBW Ichigo with edits)**

What struck out the most was the boy's hair. He had bright orange hair that ended at just some 1.5 inches below his ear which was a pretty normal hairstyle for a teenager but there was a longer braid behind his right ear. The braid was very thin, exactly 1 cm in width and 7-8 cm in height. A small red thread was wrapped around the braid but it left out spaces, enough to see the orange hair.

**(I know it's a lot of explanation for a small thin braid. I will tell you why in the end. Refer to P.S.1 and P.S.2)**

Ichigo couldn't believe what he was seeing. He knew that time travel was going to work like that but. . .

"Y-You are alive? Wait-" Ichigo said as he suddenly remembered his mother.

He turned around and found that her mother was paused in her place, not moving. But it wasn't just her, nothing was moving. Not even the rain drops. They were stuck in mid air.

'No wait, that isn't it' Ichigo said as he noticed that everything was moving slowly. Very slowly.

"What's happening?" Ichigo asked as he looked anywhere but at Ichibē.

Ichibē sighed and smiled at the 'boy'.

"If you are from the future, you must know my power! Why are you so worried boy? I just named time in such a way that it will run slow for everyone except the both of us! I can return it to normal too! So don't you worry!" Ichibē said as he gave Ichigo a bone crushing side hug.

Ichigo scrambled his way out of the hug and took two steps away from Ichibē.

'Why is it so hard to be near him. . .He is here and he needs to know about me. A-And i need to gain his trust and stuff but-' Ichigo thought as he looked away from Ichibē again as he let his hair cover his eyes.

'Why is it so hard to look at him?' Was Ichigo's final thought as his eyes looked at the train that had seemingly stopped as well.

Ichibē looked at the boy. This boy hasn't just lost someone as Ichibē had thought when he had first been ordered by the spirit king to come down here. He has lost himself in the process of finding the 'someone'.

"You see, even though I don't know you but i can tell you that even though time might run slowly, the things that are supposed to happen WILL happen. . . unless someone willingly changes it" Ichibē said gleefully as he looked at the scene where Masaki was just a metre away from getting hit by the Grand Fisher's claws.

"Do you want to save that woman boy? Are you willing to take the risk to change time?" Ichibē asked as a serious facade took over his face.

Ichigo's mind had a million other thoughts running through it. Then he looked back at the kid who was currently below Masaki and then at Masaki, who covered him from the coming attack, her eyes tightly closed as she sensed the upcoming attack.

Ichigo then looked at the kid again and noticed the tears and the fear in his eyes.

"Yes i will save her" Ichigo said without faltering this time.

Ichibē looked at Ichigo for a few seconds and then changed everything back to normal without asking.

A train started to pass over the bridge, cars started honking again and the rain started falling again.

And before Ichibē could process anything, Ichigo was gone.

Ichigo flashstepped there and without thinking twice, he slashed the hollow in two using his smaller zanpaktō.

He then put it back on his waist and the bandages wrapped themselves around the sword again.

"It never gets less better while killing him" Ichigo said as he remembered trying to kill the Grand Fisher the first time.

Even though that time he had only managed to injure him and that too with a lot of effort, he still felt that he had avenged his mother.

'Now that i think about it, he is just another weak hollow with a different ability. How powerless was i around that time?' Ichigo thought to himself as he saw the Grand Fisher's remains turn into reishi and fly off into the sky, apparently on it's way to soul society.

"Sh-Shinigami?" Masaki called out.

Ichigo's shoulders tensed and he continued to look at the river as he heard his mother's calm voice. Safe and sound.

His younger self will never have to face the agony he had. He will never have to see what lies ahead. The war, those deaths. Nothing will happen again. Not on his watch.

But for all of that to start, he has to give a response back.

Ichigo turned around to face the lady and behaved as clueless as he could.

"Y-You can see me?" Ichigo asked.

"Of course i can see you" Masaki said with a calm smile.

Ichigo wanted to cry. He had seen that smile after so long. He had never even thought that he would see it again.

"How is that possible? Humans can't see Shinigami!" Ichigo declared with a clueless scowl.

'Damn i am good at acting. I guess i need to put a bit more rudeness into it, just like how Rukia had done when she met me. Shinigami are just a bunch of overconfident assholes'

**~In Ichigo's inner world~**

**"Ahh Old man, is he forgetting he is a Shinigami too?"** Shiro said as he crossed his arms and sat on the building.

**_"Well, he is less Shinigami than the other Shinigami" _**Zangetsu said with a shrug.

**"That makes perfectly no sense"** Shiro said with a scowl

**_"So does your logic. But do you ever see us complaining?"_**

**"Why you?" **Shiro said as he cracked his knuckles.

**~Back in the real world~**

"Well. . . You see-"

"Go on woman. I don't have all day-"

"I am a quincy" Masaki interjected.

Ichigo had to hold back his smile at the thought of how similar this encounter was to the time when Masaki and Isshin had met.

"Well i guess that explains it. The hollow was probably after your kid because of his high spiritual pressure. Make sure you deplete his high sources by time or else this will keep happening" Ichigo said with a light smile.

He saw Masaki's shoulders relax a bit at the thought that Ichigo wasn't one of the shinigami that hated Quincy.

"Your hair is so similar to my kid's hair" Masaki said with a smile.

"Oh I dyed it alright. And if you don't like it it's fine, I am not proud of it either" Ichigo said as he ran a hand through his hair.

"No, I think it suits you" Masaki said as she started to set her clothes up properly. They had gotten muddy during the fight so the rain was definitely helping.

"Why didn't you use your powers?" Ichigo asked even though he knew why.

"I-I actually don't know what happened. I tried to use my powers but somehow i wasn't able to. I was so clueless that i thought Blut would work. I didn't even think twice that if my bow is not working then Blut wouldn't as well. It was as if all of a sudden i was drained out. . .?" Masaki explained as she rested her hand on young Ichigo's forehead.

'Yeah, i will have to do something about her Quincy reishi depletion. And i will have to take care of Uryu's mother too' Ichigo took a mental note as he noticed how weak Masaki looked now that her reishi was stolen.

"Thanks for saving me today" Masaki declared as she held an unconscious young Ichigo in her arms and stood up.

"Well it's my job-"

"It is your job, i know. But you still deserve the gratitude. Ichigo and i share a strong bond. I would never like him to get hurt in any way. I was careless. I cannot imagine what Ichigo would have to go through if i had died here today" Masaki said as she looked at young Ichigo fondly.

"Yeah, the kid probably loves you alot" Ichigo said as he looked at the ground and tried to compensate the situation.

Masaki looked at the man who had saved her life and smiled. Even though the man in front of her looked like the weight of all three worlds was upon his shoulders, she still felt comfortable with that cause she knew he was stronger than what he was letting up. Not just physically or spiritually.

But she felt that he had a will similar to Isshin and he would do anything to save anyone.

"I would love my son to become a man like you" Masaki said as she started to walk away.

Ichigo's head shot up at the sight of his mother leaving. All he wanted to do was run towards her and give her a bone crushing hug and tell her the truth.

That her 'son' REALLY was a man like 'him'.

Then he looked at younger Ichigo's face that was snuggled inside his mother's neck, smiling.

So he couldn't and he won't. He won't tell her the truth.

Masaki climbed the steep route and climbed over the fence. She then looked at Ichigo one last time and smiled as she walked away.

Ichigo continued to look at her until she was out of sight and then looked at Ichibē who had flashstepped to where he was standing.

"I will have to go after her. I have some more things to do"

"But you do know that-"

"Yes I know that Zero Division will have to take me into custody. But let me finish my work first"

"How can I let you do that?" Ichibē said as he added with a creepy grin,

"For all I know you must have saved people who were going to end up on bad terms in the coming future"

While saying that, Ichibē secretly tried to take a trace of Ichigo's spiritual pressure for a database search.

"You can take my spiritual pressure for testing, you don't need to be secretive about it" Ichigo said with a smile.

Ichibē flustered a bit and then cleared his throat and changed the topic.

"I cannot let you go any further than this alone"

"Then come with me" Ichigo said with a shrug.

"Eh!"

Ichibē had to give it to the boy that he knew how to get Ichibē on his nerves, which mostly no one had been able to do. This made him wonder how long has this 'boy' known him.

"How far into the future are you from?"

Ichigo looked up with a hand under his chin as if he was really calculating it.

"You didn't have a idea of how far back you were going to come?" Ichibē asked with a 'Are you serious?' look.

"Well yeah I kind of didn't. It was kind of an 'on spot' decision"

"How long did you know me?" Ichibē asked.

"Well according to my calculations, I have come back 18 years into the past"

"How did you know how far back you have come?"

"Well the woman I saved was my mom"

Ichibē's shoulders tensed. This boy has to learn to drop the big facts carefully.

"So that kid must be-"

"Yeah it was me. I was a wuss wasn't I?"

Ichibē immediately tried to overlap that Kid's spiritual pressure to Ichigo's and noticed they matched perfectly.

Ichibē must have not realised the little guy also had orange hair because of the little guy's raincoat that covered his head.

Ichibē looked at the boy who just carelessly spat out information which he should have kept to himself.

'Unless he trusts me this much' Ichibē's thought process concluded.

"Still doesn't answer my question, how long did you know ME?"

"Well I knew you for 9 years"

Ichibē's eyes widened and he asked,

"Did you know about my existence for 9 years or were you by my side?"

"If you are indirectly asking whether I lived in the soul palace or not, I don't know. It was kind of a shifting from here to there" Ichigo said as he remembered the times when Aiwach would choose different places to attack so they always had to shift to the new place to protect it until Aiwach chose another area to attack.

This was enough information for Ichibē and instead of choosing to see what kind of spiritual pressure the boy had, he chose to search for something else.

The Ōken.

And when he found it, not just in Ichigo's clothes but in his body itself, he knew what he had to do next.

"Boy you are going to tell me who you are and what's your past. Right. This. Instant." Ichibē said as he took a step forward.

"Name's Ichigo Kurosaki. Substitute shinigami, lieutenant of Squad 8 and one of the 6 members of the Royal Guard"

"6 members?"

Ichigo lowered his head in annoyance.

"Listen here baldy. Now I am not going to pretend that I don't know you that well. I am going to do some work that is going to take me exactly 15 mins. You can wait or come with me" Ichigo said as he tore out a piece of white cloth from the hayori that was tied around his waist and then tied it around his hair and face, only leaving his eyes out.

And before Ichibē could say anything, Ichigo was gone.

"How will I come with you if I don't know where you are going?" Ichibē declared to himself with a sigh as he walked towards the train bridge and stood under it as now it was raining harder.

* * *

Ichigo flash-stepped towards where he thought his mother was. It took him a few minutes and he found her outside Ryuken Ishida's home, Uryu's home.

Younger Ichigo was awake by now and was standing beside his mother, asking where they were but Masaki didn't say a thing.

Before she could knock, Ryuken had already opened the door and standing beside him was Isshin.

'Dad. . .'

It had been a long time since Isshin had died as well. For the first time that year when he died, Ichigo had missed his dad's endless rambling and crying in front of his mom's poster.

Masaki stayed quite and Isshin knew his suspicions were correct. Something was wrong.

"What happened?" Isshin asked as he signalled Ryuken to take Ichigo inside.

Attaining assurance that it was okay to go with Ryuken, Younger Ichigo followed the man inside while he talked about how Ichigo should meet his son, Uryu.

The second Ryuken took younger Ichigo inside, Ichigo came out from the old building he was hiding in. It was just in front of Uryu's house.

Isshin patiently waited for Masaki to answer but instead of doing so, Masaki fell into Isshin's hands and cried.

Ichigo clenched his jaw. It was never a good sight to see someone he loved cry out of helplessness.

He thanked Yamamoto again for teaching him how to conceal spiritual pressure completely or else all of his reiatsu would have been flying around by now. He never knew emotions could have so much effect on spiritual pressure.

Then he again paid attention to the scene in front of him. Both Isshin and Masaki were powerless right now so they won't be able to see him. He only has to look out for Ryuken and his younger self.

"You do know that I can see you right?" Suddenly Isshin asked out of nowhere.

Ichigo's eyes widened.

'No there was no way he should be able to see me. Maybe he is just rambling as always'

"I am not kidding, I really can see you" Isshin said as he held Masaki bridal style in his arms. She was feeling so weak that she had fainted.

Ichigo didn't know what he should say in a situation like this. He would probably have to wipe out Isshin's memory.

Which Ichigo would be able to do so he just asked,

"How?"

"Well let's just say that the closer my wife is to dying, the closer I am to gaining my powers back" Isshin said.

And Ichigo acted as clueless as he could and asked,

"Your powers?"

Isshin's eyes softened.

"You do realise that it's raining right?" Isshin asked with a grim look.

'Why the hell is he talking like that? Just spouting random nonsense as always-'

"You have covered your head with a white scarf and it's raining. The scarf is basically translucent now. I can clearly see your orange coloured hair" Isshin finally declared.

'Oh'

"So what goat chin? I had dyed it and I am embarrassed about it so I always cover it up" Ichigo said as he crossed his arms and put up his typical scowl.

He was doing everything he could to make Isshin think otherwise. He knew Isshin was an airhead but he also knew that his father wasn't dumb. Not at all. And if he has figured out what Ichigo thinks he has, then he will be in big trouble.

He will have to ask Ichibē to erase Isshin's memory, which would be a lot of work.

He scowled because the Ichigo this Isshin knew, never scowled. He tried to refer Isshin with a rude name because the Ichigo this Isshin knew, would never do that.

"And i don't have a goatee. . .yet, even though i was thinking of getting one. So goat chin is kind of invalid here. There was no way you should have known I was planning to get a goatee" Isshin added with a light chuckle.

Ichigo's thought process just stopped after that and he couldn't think of another way out.

"What happened . . . Ichigo?" Isshin asked as he now held his serious gaze upon his apparent son who looked broken beyond repair.

Ichigo just sighed, looked at the ground and removed his white scarf with his left hand and let the wet cloth fall on the ground.

'Maybe one last try?'

"What makes you think that i am this Ichigo person? I have no clue of who you are talki-"

"You literally have the same eyes too. So just shut up and tell me what happened" Isshin ordered as he walked inside the house as if he didn't even need to tell Ichigo to come in.

Ichigo sighed and said to himself,

"This will be more than just 20 mins"

But before he was going to take another step in, he thought,

"Or it could just take 30 mins"

'I am not going to tell them anything but I am going to tell them enough' Ichigo thought as he closed the door behind him.

* * *

Masaki was in a bedroom, resting. Younger Ichigo was is another room, playing with Younger Uryu. And Isshin and Ryuken were in a dining room with older Ichigo.

Isshin and Ryuken were sitting beside each other while Ichigo sat in front of them.

"So what is it that you guys want to ask?" Ichigo asked casually as he continued to play with a knife set that was kept in front of him on the same wooden table.

Isshin swallowed the knot in his throat and asked,

"What made you come back?"

"It's something which I cannot tell" Ichigo said quickly.

"Then tell me about your past or just your titles or something like that"

"Kurosaki Ichigo substitute shinigami. There, happy?" Ichigo said with a scowl as he got up and got ready to leave.

"How do we know you aren't lying?"

"Well if you don't want to believe that I am from the future, then don-"

"He is talking about how you didn't even bother to tell us that you are the lieutenant of Squad 8" Ryuken interjected as he gazed at Ichigo's batch.

"Fine, you wanna know who I am completely? It would take you years. Damn 18 years more to be exact!"

"At least tell us all your titles!" Isshin said as he slammed one of his fists on the wooden table firmly.

Isshin had expected this Ichigo to flinch just like his younger self would have if he had slammed the table like this in front of him.

But this wasn't a good move at all cause this Ichigo seemed to have a bit of temper.

Ichigo slammed his hands on the table and stood up. A knife in his hand. Ichigo didn't even realise when he had picked it out of the knife stand.

War instincts and raw anger management weren't a good combination.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, substitute shinigami. Once a Ryōka to the soul society, now the lieutenant of squad 8" Ichigo said as he turned around and got ready to leave.

"Soul society. . .squad 8. . . Ryōka?! What were you doing there Ichigo?" Isshin asked wide eyed as he got up and held Ichigo's arm before he could go any further and made him sit back down.

Ichigo sighed and decided to calmly explain why he couldn't say anything to him.

"Listen dad I-"

"Don't call me dad when you can't even trust me or your mother enough to tell us what happened" Isshin said viciously as he glared at Ichigo.

Ichigo was taken back. He didn't want his family to think that he didn't trust them and didn't want to be with them. It's just that be couldn't do it right now.

Ichigo pulled back and flashsteppd a few meters away from his dad.

Isshin sighed,

'So getting angry wasn't a good move' he thought.

"At least tell me if I should tell this Ichigo about spiritual world beca-" Before Isshin could complete, a knife missed his head by a centimeter and got through the wall behind him.

"Don't you dare" Ichigo said as rage flowed off him.

Ryuken got up reflexively, Isshin gulped again and thought,

'So one thing is for sure, either he has REALLY bad anger management issues or I am being a total asshole'

"It isn't about trust is it?" Ryuken asked as he kept a hand below his chin, thinking.

Ichigo looked up at Ryuken who just nodded as he did that and said,

"Masaki. . .she hadn't survived that time. Tell me if I am wrong?"

Isshin's eyes widened at that. He didn't think of that, he just couldn't. It was too unreal. He then looked at Ichigo who had a remorseful expression on his face. All of the anger gone in a matter of seconds.

The expression that his son held, it nauseated him so much that he couldn't even think what else must have happened with his son.

"You were 9 when Masaki died. . .just 9? And that too in front of you?" Isshin asked not out of shock but sympathy.

"Yeah. Grand Fisher attacked her cause she tried to save me. I didn't know what had happened in between but when I woke up, Mom was lying over me, dead"

Isshin was going to interrupt but Ichigo continued,

"Then you died when I was 22. And you uncle Ryuken, you died when I was 23. Uryu died when I was 25"

Ryuken and Isshin were taken back.

Now the only sound that they were able to hear for the next few minutes was the light pitter-patter of rain on the window.

"Ichigo,whatever war you are talking about. . .How many survived besides you?" Isshin asked as he walked over to him and held his hand again to comfort him.

Ichigo took a sharp breath in at the warm touch.

Ichigo knew he has to go and fix Masaki and Katagiri's conditions before it's too late. But he couldn't do that without Isshin and Ryuken trusting him. He would have to give them something about the past, so that they trust him enough.

"Kisuke and I were the last ones standing"

Ryuken slowly sunk back into his chair. His eyes wide with shock as he ran a hand through his hair.

Isshin tried his best to hide his shock. Right now his son needed him as a father, not as a shinigami or a person from the past.

"Ichigo, are YOU okay?" Isshin asked with a soft voice.

There was silence for a minute and the sound coming from the crinkling of wood in the fireplace only made the atmosphere more tense.

"I-I am fine" Ichigo said as he got up.

Isshin could have sworn he felt his son's hand tremble under his own touch. Not only that, but Ichigo avoided any kind of eye contact as well.

"Ichigo, just this last question. . .How many?" Ryuken asked as he got up as again.

"How many what?"

"How many wars and how long each one lasted?" Ryuken asked cause the condition Ichigo was in, not physically but mentally, was beyond something that could occur by just one big fight.

Ichigo thought for a second before replying,

"3 wars. First lasted for a month or something. Second lasted for a few days, wasn't that much of a war. Third lasted longer than the first two"

"How long?" Ryuken asked cause he knew that Ichigo was trying to avoid the topic of what happened in the last war at all costs.

Ichigo didn't say anything.

"He asked how long and I expect you to answer him" Isshin said as he glared sternly at his son.

"9 years"

"I am sorry what?"

"It lasted for 9 years"

Nobody said anything and Ichigo knew that he had to do something now or else Masaki and Katagiri would be in grave danger.

"Listen, I need to give mom and aunt Katagiri some of my spiritual pressure so that they have at least enough to replenish theirs" Ichigo said as he started to walk towards the door.

"But what's wrong with Katagiri?" Ryuken asked worriedly cause the last time he saw his wife she was fine.

"Bring her to mom's room. I will explain later or maybe you might figure it out yourself" Ichigo said as he closed the door behind him and walked away.

Isshin and Ryuken looked at each other before nodding and walked away in different directions. Isshin behind Ichigo and Ryuken in search for Katagiri.

* * *

Ichigo walked into the room where Masaki lied, still as ever. But not dead.

He went ahead and took a chair from a nearby desk near the window and set it aside Masaki's bed. Then he sat on the chair while Isshin stood behind him, watching his every move.

"What are you going to do?"

"Watch" Ichigo told Isshin as he let out a bit of his spiritual pressure and called out for spirit ribbons.

Suddenly the whole room was filled with white ribbons that glowed a bit.

One of them was red.

"You told me that you were a substitute souls reaper. Then how is your ribbon red?" Isshin asked.

"Even a substitute soul reaper has a red ribbon. A substitute soul reaper is someone who attains his or her powers from another shinigami. It doesn't mean they aren't shinigami. It happened to me but I lost those powers. And then I discovered I had powers of my own because obviously you were a shinigami and that's how biology works" Ichigo said as he kept searching for the ribbon he wanted.

Isshin just looked away in embarrassment but then he noticed a white streak on Ichigo's red ribbon.

"What's the white streak for? In your ribbon I mean"

Just when Isshin had asked that Ryuken had come in with a weak Katagiri by his side.

"The white streak you ask?" Ichigo's overlapped voice asked.

Ryuken's eyes widened as Ichigo turned around his head and one of his eyes were black with a gold iris.

And without a second thought Ryuken shot an arrow towards Ichigo while Katagiri took support of the door frame.

Ichigo caught the arrow in his hand.

"Wait. . .you can't do that unless-" Ryuken started.

"-I am a Quincy" Ichigo said as his black eyes vanished to again to show the normal brown eyes behind them.

'How does he take everything so casually?' Ryuken thought as he glared at Ichigo's head.

Without saying another word, Ichigo turned around to find Masaki's ribbon and then he caught Katagiri's ribbon too.

"That hollow within you is going to be a major problem one day Ichi-" Isshin tried but suddenly there was bright light and both Ryuken and Isshin found themselves in a place they had never thought could exist.

First thing they noticed was that it was raining really hard. Second thing they noticed that they were standing on something made of concrete. Third thing they noticed that they were defying the laws of physics and were standing on the side of a building.

Ryuken decided to think before doing anything but Isshin decided to scream, lie down and think of how he would get down.

Then when he tried to look around the area he saw a old man standing on a pole of the building, wearing all black, even a black coat and shades. But he wasn't falling. He looked similar to someone but Isshin, nor Ryuken could put their finger on who it was.

And beside him stood what looked like a completely albino version of Ichigo. He had everything similar to him, even his little braid. But all of Ichigo's dark cloth colours were his white while his light colours, like the ribbon around his braid or his Obi, they were black. Even the hair albino had was completely white. And unlike Ichigo, he didn't wear a captain's hayori around his waist, he didn't wear the armour and the lieutenant's batch. The only colour he had was his golden irisis.

The cold, rainy, dark and cloudy weather was getting on Isshin's nerves. And what irritated him the most was nobody was speaking.

**"Sooo...Kingy sent you in here?" **Shiro asked in the same hollow like voice Ichigo had used some minutes ago.

"Kingy?" Isshin asked as he now stood up, realising that he wasn't going to fall.

_**"He is referring to Ichigo"** _Zangetsu said.

"Where exactly is 'in here' ?" Ryuken asked.

Suddenly inverted Ichigo started chuckling.

"What's so funny?" Isshin asked.

**"Like father like son" **Shiro said with a maniacal grin.

"What does that mean?" Ryuken asked carefully.

**_"He is referring to how Isshin had the same reaction as Ichigo when he first entered his inner world. He instantly yelled and lied down so he won't fall"_** Zangetsu said with a light smile.

"I-Inner world? We are in his inner world? How is that possible?! Nobody could enter another person's inner wor-"

**_"Unless they are biologically connected"_** Zangetsu finished for Ryuken.

**"At least that's what happens in the future" **Shiro added.

"But how did I enter?" Ryuken asked, no, he tested their knowledge.

**"If you are talking about the fact that we don't know that Masaki was your cousin and you are Ichigo's uncle then you need to pull your facts together cause that's a lie" **Shiro said with a scowl.

"Okayyy so you DO know everything. But the way Ichigo behaved when his hollow took a bit of his body's control is still on my nerves. Don't you both try to kill it?" Isshin asked the two zanpaktō.

In reality Ichigo having two Zanpaktō wasn't a suprise to him. He had already seen too much that couldn't have been true but here they were.

Shiro looked at Isshin with a 'What the fuck?' expression then burst out laughing.

"Why does he keep laughing like that?" Isshin quietly whispered to Ryuken.

"Maybe trying to fill up your son's stack of laughing. Your son hasn't laughed at all since he met us" Ryuken whispered back dryly.

**"You guys are so clueless" **Shiro said as he finally found control over his laughter.

"You aren't worried about the hollow within him? It's a threat-"

**"Oh don't you worry so much, i AM the hollow within him" **Shiro said with a smirk.

Without waisting a second Ryuken drew his bow and released it towards Shiro

Then Zangetsu caught it.

"Oh don't tell me that you are a Quincy" Isshin said with a slight pout.

"What is up with you people and catching my arrows?!" Ryuken exclaimed.

**_"Indeed I am. Let me introduce myself and him and explain the situation a bit to you"_** Zangetsu said as he looked at Shiro who just nodded.

**_"We both are Ichigo's zanpaktō. I am his Quincy half, Zangetsu, while this guy is his hollow and shinigami half, Shiro. Basically both of us are Zangetsu but he named the shinigami side Shiro because it would be easier to refer. He could have easily summoned us outside if he wanted us to meet you but I think his intention was to get rid of you because you both were very irritating and troublesome and were clearly asking him a lot of questions which he cannot answer"_** Zangetsu said flatly.

"That's. . .a good way to put it nicely I guess" Isshin said as his eyebrows twitched in anger.

"And that's supposed to makes us feel better?" Ryuken whispered to himself.

**"And probably because if we come out then we will beat him to pulp"** Shiro said as he cracked his knuckles.

**_"He hasn't talked to us for a year"_** Zangetsu added the information before anyone could ask any further questions.

"And can't you guys stop this rain? It's irritating" Isshin said as he overlooked the beating part and looked at the massive cloud that covered the sky till his eyes could travel.

**_"We aren't the ones that put it there, Just like this city. It's Ichigo's inner soul. It rains when he is sad" _**Zangetsu said while Shiro laughed in bitter sarcasm.

**"So he has been sad for what? 6 years?"** Shiro said.

**_"We have had this conversation before. Let's drop this"_** Zangetsu said and Shiro just 'tche' away.

Isshin stared at the two Zanpaktō spirits that seemed to be worrying too much over their master even though they didn't show it.

Then Isshin looked down at his reflection in the building's window. There was nothing, literally NOTHING good that was happening to Ichigo right now and it scared Isshin. It scared him to death if his son would never be the little Ichigo again. The Ichigo who would laugh and smile all day and would be the happiest kid in the world.

**"Don't do that"** Shiro said to Isshin out of nowhere.

"Don't do what? It already seems I have done nothing" Isshin said as he sat on the concrete wall **(basically the building)**.

**_"Don't be guilty for the things you haven't done yet. You were a great father at that time and you still are" _**Zangetsu said as he jumped down the pole and now stood in front of where Isshin kneeled. Shiro soon followed.

Isshin didn't speak for a few minutes before he asked,

"Was he ever happy?"

Shiro looked at the kneeling man in front of him and then he kicked Isshin's shoulders so he would fall on his back and look at Shiro.

Isshin glared at the boy but he stopped when he saw Shiro smiling. A genuine smile.

**"More than you can imagine"** Shiro said as suddenly everything turned bright again and Ryuken and Isshin were out of Ichigo's inner world and were now standing at the same places they disappeared from.

Ichigo was still sitting in his chair and he looked tired, sweaty and pale. But both of them guessed why immediately. He had two spirit ribbons tied around his right hand and he let his left hand cover the front of his face as he concentrated what seemed like blue coloured reishi into the ribbons. The reishi was travelling through the ribbons and onto Masaki and Katagiri who were now lying together on bed.

And suddenly Ichigo got up.

Isshin flinched but then sighed in relief.He could never get used to this Ichigo's suddenness at anything.

"So what did you do all that time when you trapped us inside your inner world?" Ryuken asked bitterly.

Ichigo who wasn't fazed by the tone said,

"First I went to a person who would help me erase your memories after this. And no, the person wasn't Kisuke. Then I gave mom and aunt Katagiri some of my Quincy reishi that I had to alter in a way that they could absorb it. Just a small amount will help them kick start their spiritual pressure production again"

"Wait, isn't that. . .I don't know. . . impossible? Only Yhwach can do that" Ryuken said as he pushed up his glasses.

"That's what Yhwach _wanted_ you to believe. It's impossible to take the powers back which you have given. That was something only Yhwach could do. But it's not impossible to give powers. 12th squad figured it out after 4 years into the war"

"So you gave them your reishi by altering it a bit so that it's suitable for them? And in that way nobody would be able to sense that it was you who gave them their powers back" Ryuken concluded.

"And that's why you are Uryu's dad. Brains over everything" Ichigo whispered.

"Can you teach me how to give my Quincy reishi?" Ryuken asked as he ignored the snarky comment.

"No, only me and Uryu knew how to do it around that time and we had a good enough reason"

"And that is?"

"I said it was impossible to take Quincy powers back because we haven't figured out how to do it yet. So if someone who knows how to do the first step has a lot of time on their hands might just potentially become another Yhwach" Ichigo said as he finally glanced at the two woman who seemed to be recovering fast enough and then looked back at both the men that were standing in front of him.

Isshin and Ryuken understood the gravity of each and every word Ichigo spoke so they didn't push.

"So it's goodbye for now" Ichigo said as he walked past the two of them and started going towards the main door.

"Wait, you can't just-" Isshin started but suddenly a man wearing a rosary with extra large beads around his neck and a big black beard showed up.

He was bald and looked like someone Isshin should know about. He was standing in front of Ichigo while Ichigo had his back facing the man's back.

Then Ichigo turned his head to look at Isshin again with a knowing expression.

Suddenly the reality hit Isshin like a ton of bricks.

"Ichibē Hyōsube?!" Isshin exclaimed.

"Ah so you finally recognise me Shiba!" Ichibē said giddily.

"B-But what in the world is one of the squad zero members doing here?" Isshin asked with a commanding tone.

"One of the members? Did you forget Mr.Scowl behind me?" Ichibē said as he laughed loudly.

Isshin looked dumbfounded.

Then he looked at Ichigo with a look of betrayal who just looked away with pity.

Ichibē noticed the tension and said,

"Oh so he didn't tell you that. . .okay"

Suddenly the atmosphere turned awakward beyond repair so Ichibē just sighed and put his hand under his coat to remove something.

Ryuken and Isshin put their guard up but all Ichibē removed was a lighter and gave it to Ichigo.

"A lighter? Ichibē san I would love to have a smoke but this isn't the right time nor the place" Ichigo whispered as he stared at the lighter with confusion.

**(Yes people. Ichigo Kurosaki smokes. He is a 27 year old for Pete's sake. Let the man live. Sorry to those who don't like this new quality of his *bows*)**

Isshin's anger was now out of the roof.

"You smoke? This kind of behaviour is absolutely-"

"Now wait would you? He is not the little boy you know" Ichibē said with a slight huff.

"B-But!" Isshin wanted to continue but Ichibē didn't let him.

"Don't you recognise this Ichigo?" Ichibē turned around and interjected.

Ichigo stared at the silver lighter in his hands until he realised what it was.

"It's-!"

"Don't say it out loud" Ichibē warned with a smile.

Ichigo just nodded and then looked at Ryuken and Isshin.

"Am I getting blury?" Ichigo asked Isshin as he waved around his arms in front of Isshin.

Isshin just squinted his eyes so that he could have a proper look at what was in front of him.

"I will take that as a yes. This means mom's powers are coming back" Ichigo said as he walked around Ichibē and then stood in front of Isshin and Ryuken. And the lighter in front of their faces.

"What are you planning to do? Burn our faces?" Ryuken asked sarcastically.

"Kind of burn MY face" Ichigo said with a shrug.

Ryuken just gave a look and Isshin finally got a clear view of what was in Ichigo's hand.

"Wait that's a-!"

"Too late" Ichigo said as he pressed the button and there was pink coloured smoke all around the house.

And everyone except Ichigo and Ichibē fainted. Ryuken and Isshin were going to have a dull back ache from falling but they would be fine. Masaki and Katagiri were already out of it. Younger Ichigo and Uryu probably fainted too.

* * *

Ichibē and Ichigo flash-stepped out of the house and kept running until they reached the Karakura river again.

"They will forget me completely right? I remember one of my friends having this, she had said that if I meet them again or if they see me again, even if it's by mistake, then they will remember me and the situation that happened, completely" Ichigo asked as he put the lighter in his leather pouch, where he had now kept the useless Hogyōku and that sword hilt.

"Yes, this also works the same. You will have to be careful" Ichibē said and Ichigo just nodded as he stared at his hands that had pressed the device's switch.

Ichibē glanced at Ichigo who looked like he had made the worst decision of his life.

"It's okay you know?" Ichibē started.

"What's okay?" Ichigo asked bitterly.

"What you are doing. It's okay to not look people in the eye and not want them to know who you are. Especially when they had been dead for all these years and you would have to see them again. Trust me, it will get better. As you keep crossing paths with those people, you WILL get accustomed again. It will just take time" Ichibē said as he cast a kidō in the air, as if writing in the air with back ink.

Ichigo looked at Ichibē's face for the first time when Ichibē said that and Ichibē didn't look like he was kidding at all.

Ichigo smiled and said,

"Yeah it will take time"

Then the next moment Ichigo found the big canon, **Kakaku Ho** in front of them, the zero division emblem on it's face.

"Ready to find a solution?" Ichibē asked.

Ichigo looked at the sky as the clouds finally started to clear out of the sky, letting in a bit of sunshine and then he looked back at Ichibē and said,

"I am ready to find the problem"

Ichibē just smiled and entered the canon.

When both of them were inside the canon and the door closed, Ichigo suddenly remembered something.

"Uhhh don't we need a launch pad similar to the one Kukaku nee san had? How do you plan on launching this thing?" Ichigo asked as he got accustomed to the dark.

"Oh you mean Kukaku Shiba's launch pad? We don't need that old thing! We figured out how to fly this thing without that a 100 years ago!" Ichibē said as suddenly the light inside the canon turned on and they could see each other now.

"But then why did y-"

"We must have not told you that because we prefer no one besides the zero division members know how to launch this thing"

"Then why didn't you guys tell me when i did become a member? And this old thing even has a light switch?! Why the hell didn't you use these things when i was there!" Ichigo said with a scowl.

"It's always fun to launch people in and out of a dimension in a dark cylinder" Ichibē said as the canon rose slowly and then increased it's speed gradually, not being rash in any way.

Ichigo just gave up and sat down while Ichibē did the same.

"So what do you plan on doing?" Ichibē asked Ichigo.

"I literally have no idea"

"Then want to follow my plan?"

"And that would be?"

"Oh i will tell you once we get there! Let's just catch some shut eye!" Ichibē said as he took out a purple pillow from his Hayori and puffed it up.

Then he put it down and without a second thought laid his head on it with the aim of falling asleep.

"How long till we reach there?"

"An impatient one aren't you? We will reach there in an hour" Ichibē said as he tried sleeping again only to be interrupted again.

"You know you shouldn't sleep around people that you have met just a hour ago. For all you know, this time travel thing could be a fake drama and i am a serial killer with a aim to kill the zero division" Ichigo said as he laid down on the other side of the canon but without a pillow.

"Well you may lie to me boy but that Ōken you are made of doesn't. Soul King doesn't just grant the Ōken to anyone. And zero division doesn't add a member without any thinking" Ichibē said as he finally dozed off.

Ichigo decided to not think much about what Ichibē said. He then started counting the number of lavender painted flowers on the inside of the door of the canon. It's not like he would like to sleep anyways. Either the nightmares would trouble him or he won't be able to stay in a steady position of sleeping. So he continued counting the flowers.

And just how Ichibē had said, they reached there in an hour.

Ichibē woke up but didn't get up. He stayed in that position and with the corner of his eyes he observed what Ichigo was doing.

He noticed that with his right hand Ichigo was pointing towards the door. But then he saw his lips moving in a synchronizing manner, as if they were counting something. Then Ichibē noticed how Ichigo's hand was moving in the same manner of his speaking.

'Is he seriously counting the flowers?' Ichibē thought as he moved a bit.

Noticing the moment Ichigo quickly stopped what he was doing and sat up as well.

"Did you sleep well?" Ichibē asked as he got up and walked towards the door.

"Yeah i slept fine" Ichigo said as he followed Ichibē out.

'Liar' Ichibē thought.

As soon as Ichigo put one step out he knew something was going to happen cause just when they were out, Ichibē was out of his sight.

Ichigo looked around as if he was searching for something or as if he was lost.

While somewhere behind the curtains that were made by Senjumaru Shutara in a matter of seconds, everyone was staring at the screen in front of them that was recording Kurosaki Ichigo's actions.

"Well he doesn't seem to know much about the Royal Palace considering he must have lived here if he was a Royal Guard" Senjumaru said while she covered her mouth as she spoke, with one of her golden arms.

"Yeah, what a dumbo" Ichigo said as he rested his arms on his waist with a disappointed look on his face.

"I know right!" Ōetsu Nimaya said as he glanced back and then again stared at the screen.

Then it hit him and he quickly turned behind and it didn't even take him a second to put his sword an inch away from Ichigo's neck.

"How did you get in here?" Senjumaru asked as her own golden skeletal arm held a big needle that can be considered a sword, around Ichigo's neck.

"Oh I saw you sewing this curtain up so I decided to wait until you were done and then I came behind you guys. Honestly it's a hard job to find your curtains, really. They are too realistic" Ichigo said casually as he pushed both of the swords away with his palms.

"You have got some nerve" Tenjirō Kirinji said as he felt his eyebrows twitch in irritation.

Ichigo just sighed and cleared his throat.

Everyone who had been plotting plans in their minds to attack Ichigo if he makes any move, had now pulled their attention to the boy as he cleared his throat and sat on one of his knees, his head bowed while one of his hands touched the ground while the other rested on his bended knee.

"What are you doing bo-"

"I want you to know that I serve you and as a Royal Guard it is my responsibility to tell you anything you want"

Everyone who had been taken back by the boy's action knew that there was a catch to this.

Suddenly Kirinji took the same position as Ichigo and repeated the same words Ichigo had.

A few minutes passed but nobody moved.

"What are the both of you trying to accomplish here?" Nimiya asked as he pushed his sun glasses up.

Suddenly Ichigo stood up and so did Kirinji.

Kirinji was grinning like an idiot and Ichigo had a ghost of a smile on his face as he looked at the ground.

"So you really are the Royal Guards" Ichigo said in a bit amusing tone as his shoulders relaxed.

"What do you mean by 'we really are the Royal Guards'? Didn't you come here cause you believed us?" Senjumaru asked.

"Well I cannot trust anything, that's who I am right now. Fighting with a man whose expertise was illusions gets on your nerves" Ichigo said as he scratched the back of his neck.

"So what was up with this act?" Nimiya asked as he put his sword back.

"What is a Royal Guard's motto?! Do I live with idiots?!" Kirinji yelled as he smacked Nimiya across his head.

"A Royal Guard's motto is to protect the soul king"

"And what did he say?" Kirinji asked as he pointed at Ichigo.

"Well he said that he has sworn on serving as a Royal Guard and he will tell us anything we want to kno- Oh wait" Senjumaru continued as she realised where this was headed.

"You buck headed fools took so long to understand that he wasn't refering to US when he said he has sworn on serving us and he wasn't refering to US when he said he would tell us anything we want to know. He was referring to-"

"The soul king" Ichibē concluded.

"And so I bowed, in a gesture that I am doing a similar job" Kirinji said with a grin.

"So that thing about you fighting a man with ' expertise in illusions ' . . . Does it have anything to do with-"

"Souske Aizen? Yes it does" Ichigo completed for Kirio Hikifune.

Suddenly a grim atmosphere surrounded the area and nobody knew what to say.

Ichigo sighed and started walking towards the Soul King's main island.

And before he could take another step towards the building all 5 members of the Royal Guard surrounded him in a circle.

"So you still don't trust me?" Ichigo said as he looked at the building that was floating in the sky, still wondering how he would get there.

"We would be fools if we trusted you right off the bat" Senjumaru said.

"Well what do you think I can do to make you trust me? If you can't trust me, then I cannot go any further than this" Ichigo said as he sat down on the wooden floor while the members of the Royal Guard stared at him as if he had lost it.

"Okay then let's start with you telling us about the-"

"Nope"

The silence later was almost deafening.

"What do you mean 'no' ?!" Kirinji said as he slammed the floor with one of his legs.

"You were going to ask me about the future weren't you?" Ichigo asked as the atmosphere suddenly turned dead serious just because Ichigo decided it to.

Nobody said a word and it was an obvious answer.

"I told you to make me do something that would involve you trusting me, so that shouldn't involve anything related to my past" Ichigo explained in a calm demanour.

"Why is that?"

"Because me coming back means we lost the war. And I don't think you would be able to trust a person who was a leading cause in losing it" Ichigo said with dry sarcasm.

"Ichigo. . ." Kirio said as worry laced her voice.

"You can at least tell us about your past that has to do with your current plan right?" Ichibē asked.

"Of course" Ichigo said.

"Then let's start with why you wanted to go to the Soul King's building?" Ichibē asked with a smile which everyone knew was fake and deadly.

"I wanted to put a Bakudō spell around the Soul King's cavity, you know, that purple thing inside which he stays-"

"Yeah we know about it. But WHY do you want to put a Bakudō around it?" Kirio asked.

"So that this time i won't slice him in half" Ichigo said casually and it didn't take more that a second to have 5 swords against his throat.

"Say that again but slowly. . ." Kirinji said with a deadly look in his eyes.

"Quick to judgement as always. Did i tell you i was in my own control when i did that?" Ichigo said as he closed his eyes with a tire full sigh.

"So who was the one that was controlling you?"

Ichigo looked at his sword, an image of Zangetsu flashing in his mind, looking like a carbon copy of Yhwach.

"Yhwach"

Ichigo felt the swords moving away from his neck while an aura of confusion surrounded the area.

"But how did Yhwach control you? He can only control the Quincy" Kirinji said.

"That's because i AM a Quincy"

. . . . . ***crickets***

"Okay let's consider that our future selves made a Quincy a Royal Guard for a second ha ha . . . But what weapon did you use to kill him? The Soul King i mean." Kirio asked awkwardly as she laughed to lighten the situation.

"I used a Zanpaktō"

. . . . . ***crickets***

"Well if you consider your normal swords as Zanpaktō then we don't have a problem with i-"

"No, i used my real Zanpaktō"

. . . . . ***crickets***

"Okay that's it! What kind of a FREAK are you?!" Kirinji yelled while Nimiya tried to stop him from hitting Ichigo.

Ichigo's body became tense.

'Freak'

'That's what they are probably thinking i am'

'A freak that might kill them'

'At this rate how am i going to gain their trust'

'I need to do something'

'What if i fail to protect everyone ag-'

"Ichigo!"

Ichigo was bought back to reality as he heard Nimiya yell at him.

He didn't see anyone's faces but he knew all of them were glaring at Kirinji for saying that.

"Uh i guess i. . .I am s-sorry" Kirinji said with half hearted guilt.

"It's okay, really. That is what i am now, a freak. A useless freak" Ichigo said as he stood up.

Kirio looked at the boy worriedly. She felt some of her spiritual pressure coming off the boy. So it meant she must have fed him just a few weeks ago since her spiritual pressure stays inside someone she feeds for months and the one she felt from him was pretty strong.

So it meant that, for Ichigo, she had died just a few weeks ago.

"I may be a freak, but i am a freak with a plan" Ichigo said as he smirked slightly.

"But can you least tell us what kind of shinigami you are?"

"Sure. So let's get this straight, i am not a normal shinigami" Ichigo said and everyone nodded.

"Figured out that much-" Nimiya said with a light shrug.

"I am a Shinigami - Quincy - Hollow - Human hybrid"

"Anddddd didn't see THAT coming" Nimiya continued.

A few seconds passed and then Senjumaru said,

"I think a explanation is needed as of how. . .this happened" as she pointed at Ichigo with ALL of her arms.

"Well how should i explain this, uhh Aizen?"

"That seems sensible enough" Nimiya said as he nodded in understanding.

"Look guys, i don't have much time. I have other things to do" Ichigo said as he ruffled his own hair in stress.

"Things like?" Senjumaru asked suspiciously.

"Oh I don't know? Maybe stop a 9 year long war from happening?" Ichigo said sarcastically.

"Okay so tell us why you need to place a barrier around the Soul King's cavity? I mean i understand that you want to stop yourself from slicing the cavity but wouldn't Yhwach sense the Kidō around it?" Kirio said.

"Because i know the amount of strength Yhwach will be using to make me kill the Soul King, I also know the amount he will be having at that time. So i am going to make a Kidō that he won't be able to sense at that level of powers. That kidō will make a barrier around the cavity whenever a strength that equals to Yhwach may try to attack it and that would also repel my strength when the time comes"

"But can't you do something now that you know that he can control your body?"

"If there is a way that you can remove my Quincy genes from me without removing my Quincy zanpaktō, then sure i would like to avoid getting controlled at all" Ichigo said as he crossed his arms.

"Well there isn't" Senjumaru said in a defeated tone.

Ichigo looked at Senjumaru for a minute. It wasn't in her character to behave like she can't do anything even when she really can't do anything.

Then he noticed some titbits of different emotional characters among the Royal Guards.

At first he had shrugged it off considering that maybe they will become similar to how Ichigo knew them if some more time passed. Cause naturally Ichigo knew them 9 years later from now.

But the difference seemed quite major, for it to occur in just 9 years.

So Ichigo drew out the final conclusion.

"Listen now, i know that you already knew that Yhwach can control me and you can't remove my Quincy blood and shit. So let's not act clueless here. So let's get straight to the point . . . " Ichigo started with a deep sigh and then continued.

"What are you guys. . . stalling time for?"

* * *

**(P.S.1 I couldn't figure out how to describe the braid properly. So I want you guys to refer to Isane of squad 4, Unohana Captain's squad. She has similar 2-4 long strands. I just gave one to Ichigo, but smaller. He hasn't put anything fancy like rings around his braid. Isane has small rings around her STRANDS. Ichigo has a red thread wrapped around his BRAID. Just a small thread around it that didn't even cover it mostly)**

**(P.S.2 I know it's a lot of explanation for a small braid but I wanted to describe Ichigo's appearance perfectly because you guys will have to imagine Ichigo like that for the rest of the story. It's not compulsory for you to imagine him like I am doing in the story. But I wanted to depict the changes that have occurred in him after 9 years. It shouldn't confuse you guys as to how I was thinking of him in the story)**

**(****P.S.3**

**A**** Queen Among Women: Thank you so much****!**

**DiamondCutterTM: Hoping to satisfy!)**


	3. Chapter 3

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**Let's**** make a few things clear :~**

**~All responses will be at the end of the chapter in form of PS**.

**~PLEASE comment if I have made a mistake in my writing.**

**~And PLEASE leave reviews if you like or dislike what I have written! I take everything positively! (•‿•)**

**~You guys need to have at least a portion of knowledge of how the Royal Guard and the Soul Palace look like. This is for the sake of your own good experience! You can just Google it.**

**~And the most important one. . .****Please enjoy my writings!**

* * *

"What are you guys . . . stalling time for?"

"What do you mean-" Nimiya started but Ichigo wasn't buying it.

"What are you trying to do Senjumaru san?" Ichigo asked as he took a threatening step towards her.

But the woman didn't waver at the spontaneous action and just narrowed her eyes further.

Ichigo noticed that her hands were behind her back.

Something clicked in Ichigo's mind and he quickly bought up his hands which now faced the sky and started chanting a Kidō spell that none of the Guards knew.

"What are you doing?" Kirinji asked, his voice clearly telling Ichigo to stop what he was doing right away.

"Protecting my mind" Ichigo said without stopping the spell for more than a second.

Suddenly something similar to black ink started dripping from Ichigo's palms that were joined and the second the first drop fell on his head, his bright orange hair turned pitch black.

Senjumaru flinched as a sudden pain shot through her hands. She bought them in front and noticed that the tips of her fingers had turned black as well.

"What did you do to her?" Kirinji asked as he gritted his teeth, his hand always near his sword.

"I stopped her from using that Kidō which she had already casted the second I came in here" Ichigo said as he bought down his hands and then looked at his braid as it was the only thing he could see without a mirror.

'I never like the idea of black hair. I look like Kaien's twin' Ichigo thought with a sigh.

**~In Ichigo's inner world~**

**"Ha! That means your hair sucks!" **Shiro said to Zangetsu who just looked away in disagreement.

'But when i look at Shiro, i know that white hair on me would look as if i had dipped my hair in baby powder. So this is much better' Ichigo thought again.

**_"Ah you don't have to be so down. You do have one advantage with your white hair" _**Zangetsu said with a smirk as Shiro sulked on the edge of the building.

**"And that advantage is?" **Shiro asked with a glimmer of hope.

**_"Your skin is dipped in baby powder too"_**

Shiro just cracked his knuckles while Zangetsu took out his sword with a smirk.

**~Outside Ichigo's inner world~**

"So you knew what i was trying to do?" Senjumaru asked.

"Yeah"

There was nothing but silence after.

Everyone was thinking whether the 'boy' had any further precautions while Ichigo was thinking whether the Royal Guard had any other tricks up their sleeve.

He knew better than anyone that it was a handy task to distract the Royal Guards and strike your own trick.

Doing that would be similar to cheating in a game of chess when 5 judges were watching your every move.

"But at least i half succeeded" Senjumaru declared.

Ichigo's eyes widened even though inside he had already suspected that something wasn't right.

'Wait what?' still his mind said.

"Wait, but i used the memory blocking Kidō on you. . ."

"But don't you see? You only managed to block the tips of my fingers from using my memory gaining Kidō. Rest of my palm is free" Senjumaru said as she held up her palm and showed it to Ichigo.

"Kidō is an art based on using your palms completely. You didn't know that. This tells us that you didn't have much knowledge on Kidō before you started fighting as a shinigami right? I mean, you are just 27 for Kami's sake" Senjumaru concluded further with a smirk.

'How does she know my age? I didn't tell my age to any- Wait don't tell me she already-'

"You took too much time to cast your Kidō kid, She had already casted more than half of it until you realised" Nimiya said as he took off his glasses and looked down in shame and it didn't go unnoticed by Ichigo.

'But why shame?' Ichigo thought. They were only going to check if what he was telling was right.

Right?

"And your black hair indicates that you have blocked your mind right? But both the sides, your hair and my hands have to be fully black for your Kidō to work" Senjumaru explained.

"You may be from the future boy, but not all artistic kidō were invented in the future. This one that you just used, was designed by me and Tessai Tsukabishi, the former captain of the kidō corps" Senjumaru said as one of her golden arms retrieved a scroll from her waist.

"What's in that?" Ichigo asked carefully, talking a step back.

"How to counter attack the memory Kidō you just used" Senjumaru said as she opened the scroll.

Ichigo just looked at his hands and wondered how did he let this happen.

He knew that Tessai used to work with Senjumaru san a long time ago. But he didn't know that they used to work on Kidō.

Ichigo's look said it all. It said how disappointed or even, disgusted he was at everyone here. He had come here with an intension of getting help so that he could help them, yet these people were acting so foolish.

Were they always this foolish?

Or did they really had no trust in him whatsoever?

The atmosphere around the Soul Palace had heated up but not physically. And it was so silent that one step on the wood and the it's creak would travel a thousand miles away.

When nobody decided to speak, Senjumaru just rolled her eyes and said,

"Oh you clueless people. It's not like I love what I am doing right now but you all know we have to do it. We don't deserve what would come next if we decided to believe in him, that is, if he is lying"

Her eyes passed once again, over the black mop of hair, wondering if he was ready to drop his own memory blocking wall.

But the black colour that still existed in Ichigo's hair gave his answer.

Senjumaru in her mind told herself that she will do what she has to do and that whatever she is doing, it's for the well being of the soul king.

Then her golden hands held the scriptures in front of her as she casted the kidō that went against the memory blocking kidō

"So where was i with your memory? Oh yes-" Senjumaru said as she closed her eyes and tried to concentrate further.

Ichigo felt something entering his mind, not in a way to change things, but to have a view. It was as if they were trying to see everything from his point of view.

And they were not trying to see just some titbits, the way he had thought.

But they were trying to see the whole thing.

He knew he had to do something briskly but what?

He cannot let them see their horrid future, at least not until he has found a way to prevent it.

And finding no other openings, Ichigo thought verbal communication was the best choice.

"You can't do that. You can't just look into someone's memory! Don't you guys have honour?" Ichigo half yelled.

All he didn't need right now was to make them see him as a dangerous object.

But nothing seemed to have any effect.

"Our honour lies in protecting the soul king. If we have completed that task, we have gained all the honour we might need" Ichibē said as his eyes showed nothing but sympathy for the boy.

It wasn't like the Royal Guard didn't realise that what they were doing was very well below their standards and petty. So low, that they will have to apologize to the boy afterwards with everything they have got. Ichigo might hate them forever for it, but they should at least know if he really is the person he is speaking of.

So they didn't have any choice.

"But why are you guys doing this?" There was a tinge of pain behind his voice. It sounded as if he was tired of this, tired of it all.

It made them pause for a minute, thinking, they might have just ruined their image in his mind.

But what did this boy value to them? It's not like they knew him. And he had been here just for the last hour.

But that feeling of guilt still persisted in their hearts, as if they were betraying one of their own.

Even Senjumaru didn't want to do this, however much she might hide it, this felt like a totally wrong option to anyone.

"Please start Senjumaru san, it's better to get this painful process over with" Kirio said as even she ignored Ichigo's pleas.

'Kirio san?' Ichigo had half expected for Kirio to be the one who would call this thing off.

Ichigo looked up in shock at Kirio. The first time he had looked at someone's face completely since he got here.

The expression Kirio held was beyond what he could absorb. It was morphed from disgust.

Disgust directed towards him? Or perhaps on herself because of what she was going to do.

He didn't know and he didn't care enough to know.

And like statues, they all stood there, being as ignorant as they can be of the man in front of them.

The man who wants to save them.

Ichigo stopped. He didn't say anything. He knew that if even Kirio has agreed to do such a lowly thing, then nobody would stop the others from going further.

With a slightly nervous look at Ichigo's lack of words all of a sudden, Senjumaru started viewing.

"Okay, so his name is Kurosaki Ichigo, he is 27 years old, he is the lieutenant of Squad 8, Kyōroku san is still the captain of Squad 8, till that time. He is also one of the members of the Royal Guard" Senjumaru declared.

As she received nods from everyone, she continued.

"He is apparently married. Wife's name is Orihime Inoue. She is a human that gained spiritual powers from him. Friends include quincy, humans, humans with spiritual abilities, shinigami, arrancar and . . . all the members of Goatei 13 and the Royal Guard" Senjumaru said as she looked at Ichigo who had apparently decided to sit down and hold his head as if in complete ignorance.

His hair already turned back to his original orange colour.

She gave a glance towards Ichibē, as if asking him if she needed to stop. Ichibē just gave her a look that said continue, which she did.

Senjumaru looked at Ichigo again, narrowed her eyes, as if trying to pluck something out but then again continued.

"Other friends include, exiled former captain of Squad 12-Urahara Kisuke, exiled former captain of Kidō corps Tessai Tsukabishi and Vizards?"

She raised a questioning eyebrow at Ichigo forgetting that he wasn't even looking at her that instant.

"Anyways,"-Senjumaru said as she squeezed her eyes more to get more deep into the memories-"Vizards were the ones that were exiled as well"

She looked at Ichigo again, his posture didn't seem to change at all.

Everyone might think that she is trying to look at the boy again and again to see if he lying.

But that just wasn't it.

The only reason she kept glancing at the boy was because she wanted to know something.

She wanted to know when was the part Ichigo didn't want them to see going to come.

She wanted to know if the situation was really that heart clenching.

She wanted to know what in the world happened that turned a young man into a this killing machine with a human heart.

And in the end, she wanted the Soul King to tell her this was just a colossal lie.

"I should just get straight to the war" Senjumaru said as she received nods of approval from everyone besides Ichigo.

Her calculative gaze saw Ichigo's shoulders twitch or was it her imagination?

But she cannot risk anything. She just couldn't. She had to do that.

"Okay so-" She concentrated harder. But it seemed as if there was nothing but darkness further.

She tried again but it was as if a wall was blocking her.

"Are you perhaps in some way, still trying to block my way?" Senjumaru asked Ichigo.

"Don't you want to stop for a second and think that maybe i am doing this so that you don't have to see what i have seen? And trust me i am not talking about the good part" Ichigo said as he got up slowly.

Ichigo had been thinking all this time, of what he should do in this situation. And the conclusion he came to? Nothing would work out if he always tried to go against them. He has to explain them, why against at all.

"You know that we have to do this, right?" Kirio asked sadly.

"But I don't want you to know what lies ahead! First of all, it will ruin my plan. Second of all, you all don't deserve to watch something that you are not the cause of!"

"We have seen and fought wars worse than the one you have seen or are talking about boy. Do you think we became centuries old just like that?" Ichibē asked as he slammed his sandals on the ground.

"The only hard core proof that you are not on our bad side is that you know how to get on our nerves. That's something only a person who has been by our side for years can do" Ichibē added with a grunt.

And nobody could agree more. Cause besides them, nobody, literally nobody could get Ichibē angry.

"But this war is the worse than any you have seen" Ichigo said as he rubbed his right foot on the ground, feeling like a kid trying to explain a situation to adults.

"What makes you think that?" Ichibē said, a underlining of anger still surrounding his words.

"Cause you said it yourself" Ichigo said in the same tone as he scrunched his face at the memory.

_-Flash Back-_

_Ichibē jumped out of the rubble, carrying 10 more people on his back. Mostly children._

_"This is the last lot, let's head back and let them find their families!" Ichibē called out._

_Ichigo who was standing a few 20 meters away just nodded, put his swords back and flashstepped towards Ichibē. He had been standing guard for an hour or so, he wondered why Ichibē took so long._

_"What took you so long?" Ichigo asked as he took two kids on his own back and one in his arm, Ichibē could carry them himself because of his big body but Ichigo just felt bad that he wasn't doing much._

_"One of the lads had a sword of a dead shinigami. The shinigami probably died protecting them. The lad was using that sword to protect everyone behind him. It took a lot of time to convince him that I was a shinigami too" Ichibē said with a sigh_ _then looked at Ichigo who just pouted, why won't he?_

_The boy Ichibē was talking about sounded a lot like Ichigo himself. If this wasn't funny enough, the boy even had a similar hairstyle to Ichigo, he was just missing the braid Ichigo had_ _and of course, his hair colour._

_"He didn't recognize me because the Royal Guards have never interacted with the Rukongai citizens. Heck they probably don't even know what the Royal Guard are" Ichibē continued with a light chukle._

_But Ichigo knew better as he traced the regret behind those words._

_Saying nothing, Ichigo kept staring at a distance, at the fire that was surrounding the once beautiful 21st district of Rukongai._

_Apparently Ichibē was doing the same._

_"This war Ichigo. . .I want it to end as fast as it can" Ichibē said as he stopped in his tracks and looked at the dark sky__, not wanting to continue looking at the rubble._

_Ichigo himself looked up while the little girl in his arms played with his braid._

_"It's going to rain Ichibē San, let's head back faster. There might be another attack soon" Ichigo said as he smiled lightly at the girl who was giggling as she played with his braid._

_Ichibē did nothing to prove that he had heard Ichigo and Ichigo looked at the man again._

_Those fun and vibrant eyes of the Sage he once knew weren't there. _

_"You are so old that you might have seen worse than this. That's what I keep telling myself, So that I can never complain of this war being so bad. Worse has already happened" Ichigo declared with a shrug as he lightly patted Ichibē's leg with his own, trying to give the old man some reassurance that he isn't alone and that people look up to him._

_"What do you mean this war isn't as worse as the others?" Ichibē asked as he raised an eyebrow at Ichigo._

_And before Ichigo could say anything there was another blast nearby, probably hollows attacking more Rukongai citizens._

_"Let's go!" Ichigo said in a hurry._

_"Ichigo"_

_The seriousness in Ichibē's voice made Ichigo stop._

_He turned to look at the man who had a solemn look on his face._

_"This war is unlike any other I have seen. And I hope to stop it as fast as one could, cause this war . . . is the only one where I am not the one capable of ending it" Ichibē said as he looked at the ground while one of the kids pulled at his rosary._

_Ichigo knew what he meant and without thinking twice, he said,_

_"The war will end, trust me"_

_-End flashback-_

Senjumaru stopped. She wasn't able to enter the war but when Ichigo thought about the scene from the war, automatically, even she was able to see it.

And that scene was all she seemed to need.

Everyone looked at Senjumaru, as of asking her whether what Ichigo said was true or not, to which she just nodded.

"Well I am sorry Kurosaki san that we had to do that. But you know that we had a valid reason-" Senjumaru started but was interrupted.

"Valid reason my ass" Ichigo said as he clenched his fists.

"If you were at our place then you would have-"

"-never done that" Ichigo completed for Nimiya.

Everyone had half expected this thing to not affect Ichigo in such a heavy way, their assumptions being wrong as always.

"Ichigo. . .How bad was this 'despair' of Soul Society?" Kirio asked but she never got a response and that was enough of an answer.

Before they could do anything else, Ichigo just raised his arm, as if asking them to not continue further.

"It would be no use if you guys don't get what I mean. So let me explain?" Ichigo kind of raised his eyebrow to denote his questioning tone.

It took them a second to process and all of them shook their head as a 'yes'.

Ichigo took a deep breath and chose his words wisely. He knew that one wrong step and everything would go haywire.

Cause however strong he might be, he wouldn't want to hurt the Royal Guard. That sort of thing went beyond his mannerisms.

"So I came back from the future.

My aim? To stop the war.

To stop the war? I will have to stay hidden and stop all of the small activities that led to the big war.

So I cannot let anyone to know about my presence in this world. But I cannot do everything if I stay hidden. It will require me to appear naturally" Ichigo said as he nodded at his own precise explanation before continuing.

"And I cannot do that if every damn person knows I am from the future" He concluded.

There was silence for a minute before Kirio asked,

"Uhh sooooo. . .What do you want us to do?"

Ichigo knew that it wasn't going to be hard to explain. But the more overwhelming part would be the next step.

"I want you guys to forget about me. I want to use memory replacement on you guys. I have a person to whome I am going to reveal everything. That person will be the one who will help me out. Then I want to go to Soul Society and enter as a Shinigami Academy student. Then I will execute my plan. Or i am planning to do something else, this was just a rough plan. I have a clear idea of what I want to do . . . It's just you guys now.

You guys decide if we let the war happen or not" Ichigo said as he let an anxious gaze pass over everyone.

A minute passed.

Another minute.

Another minute.

'What if they don't-'

"Okay" Kiro said.

Ichigo looked up at Kirio with a startling look on his face.

Kirio chuckled softly before she said,

"We are not completely heartless Kurosaki kun! We just prefer precaution over cure!"

Ichigo sighed in relief. He still hated the idea of them tampering with his memories but he was glad that they never got to saw the war. The scene with Ichibē was just from the 2nd year.

Hearing another creak of wood, Ichigo looked in the direction the sound came from. He saw Senjumaru walking towards the Soul King's building. Her walking style almost asked everyone to join her, which they did without a second thought.

* * *

Going there wasn't a big issue, the canon on which they came on was needed again. This time only taking 3 mins in arriving.

Ichigo walked into the all too familiar room. The smell of the old wood and lavender covered his senses entirely. The big violet curtains hung around the room in any direction while two covered the Soul King's capsule from sight.

He couldn't believe that the room wasn't tattered at all.

In his past, the Soul King's room was the only room that was rebuilt again and again just because Soul King lived in it, despite being cut in half.

Cause everyone kind of hoped the Soul King would grow back.

Ichigo now released a dry chuckle at the stupid thread they were holding onto.

'We really hoped that the soul king would grow back like a freaking plant?' Ichigo thought.

Yet again, that idea seemed a lot reliable when they had nothing to hold onto.

He looked at his sword which had killed the soul king and scrunched his face at the memory of his hand being not under his control.

He then glanced at the scene in front of him again and took in the environment.

The fact that he indeed was in the past was hard to swallow.

"What are you waiting for?" Ichibē asked with light smile as he gave Ichigo's shoulders a light push.

Ichigo looked back at Ichibē and it didn't even take him a second to see the suspiciousness still behind the man's eyes.

But who was he to blame?

A man from 18 years into the future, who apparently is the reason soul king died, says that he needs to stop a 9 year long war and that he is human as well as a Royal Guard?

Yeah nobody was going to believe in that kind of shit in just few hours meeting.

Again, he looked in front, finally deciding to walk towards the curtains.

Ichigo knew that for the two curtains to open up, someone with the Ōken must walk towards it until they were in a range of 10 meters.

It wasn't like they couldn't be opened manually or they had some amazing protection powers that only granted access to Royal Guards. It was just a luxury.

But before Ichigo could walk into that 10 meter radius he was stopped by a firm grip on his shoulder.

He looked behind to see Nimiya looking at him with his glasses off, this meant he was pretty serious.

"What do you wan-"

"Your Zanpaktōs."

"Oh"

'He must have seen me looking at my sword, anxious guy' Ichigo thought.

Without thinking any further Ichigo took both of his Zanpaktō out along with their sheaths.

But for some reason he felt like something was wrong.

'That's weird' Ichigo thought as he raised an eyebrow at the sight of Nimiya taking his sheathed swords away.

For some reason his sword felt different in his hands. Not unfamiliar. They felt different from a few hours ago.

Nimiya had his back to Ichigo as he talked with Kirio about something. The others kept on staring at Ichigo, waiting for him to do what he came there to do. But Ichigo was lost in his own thoughts.

Ichigo had kept both of his swords sheathed when he was with Kisuke, in the past.

He was sure of it.

Why would he need it to be in released state if there was nobody to save or kill with Aiwach being half dead?

But when he recalled his riverside incident with Grand Fisher just a few hours ago, he remembered clearly that his swords were in a released state because the bandages had wrapped themselves around his swords, instead of him putting them back in his sheaths.

So when did he release them? In between traveling back in time?

And when did he bring them back to their normal states? While traveling into the soul palace?

Suddenly his throat went dry as he felt a pinch of his power being drained from him. So little, that if he wasn't trained by Yamamoto in keeping track of his reiatsu, then he would have never known.

But what alarmed him more was the fact that he wasn't the one drawing the power.

Suddenly he felt something was going to happen, like a tug in his brain, more like his soul.

And on instinct he yelled,

"Nimiya! Drop the swords!"

Nimiya turned his head to look at Ichigo and ask what was the big deal then suddenly he felt his palms getting hot. Too hot.

He shrieked in pain as he dropped the now ribbon covered swords, flapping his palms furiously to make the heat go away.

The swords fell down on the ground with big thuds while their metal hilts looked red hot.

Ichigo ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh of defeat.

Kirinji just grunted in annoyance as he threw a bottle of his healing water at a 'still yelping in pain' Nimiya who caught it gratefully.

Senjumaru was sending a looks of disappointment at Ichigo who just came up with the best excuse he could for now.

"They don't like to be held by other people" Ichigo declared the half lie.

"Your Zanpaktō?" Senjumaru asked, her disbelieving tone clearly visible.

"Yeah. They don't like when I am unarmed or they get taken away from me. So they rebel"

"Then why did they change into their shikai? Can't they just rebel in their normal states?"

And that's what the half lie cannot explain.

He knew that his Zanpaktō didn't want to be held by anyone other than him.

But them fluctuating from shikai and normal states was just their way of conveying their distaste in . . . what?

That's what he was not able to tell and won't be able to in the future as well.

But he knew that he deserved it. Deserved the anger.

Zangetsūs didn't rebel much back then, when they were at war. They understood that Ichigo wasn't in a state where he could just sit down to meditate and talk.

Even if Ichigo could talk to them without meditation, who would want their swords to know what a pitiful state their owner was in.

But he guessed his efforts mustn't be of much use, it must have been raining in his inner world for ages. So his swords probably knew it already.

"It's just one of the quirks of having 2 egoistic Zanpaktōs" Ichigo said as he walked over to pick us his swords and turned them back to normal state. Then be rested them against one of the pillars that was near to where the Royal Guard were standing.

"Go ahead and disrespect my work" Nimiya said as he shook his head with a defeated look all over.

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked while he continued walking towards the curtains, barely acknowledging his words.

"I sensed my reiatsu on your blade's hilt Kurosaki san. It's obvious i was the one who personally forged them for you" Nimiya said proudly as he pushed up his sunglasses and flashed a big grin.

His words now fell empty on Ichigo's ears as Ichigo was no longer listening to Nimiya.

Nimiya's voice was just a dull ringing in his ears. His eyes were too focused on the sight soul king.

Well and alive.

Even though he might not admit it, but just like everyone, he was fascinated by the soul king.

He was fascinated by the fact that this one guy was the start and the end of all.

Yet he was so fragile.

"Are you just going to stand there Ichigo?!" Kirinji yelled from his spot.

Ichigo just waved his one hand, saying that he would start just now.

He stretched his fingers, rolled up his right sleeve, cracked his neck and then looked back at the capsule with a determined look.

"Just what kind of Kidō are you trying to use boy?" Ichibē asked as kept asking himself why Ichigo looked like he was getting ready for a sumo wrestling match.

"Yeah kid, a normal Kidō won't work against Yhwach you know" Senjumaru said.

"Who do you think trained me with Kidō?" Ichigo asked, not being able to even smirk proudly at the person's memory, as they were no more.

"Huh?"

"Tessai Tsukabishi"

"You mean the former captain of Kidō corps? The one who made weird and obviously not needed kidō spells with Senjumaru?!" Nimiya asked wide eyed.

"Yup"

"Hey!" Senjumaru said as she gave an offended look while Nimiya just laughed.

"Then show us what you got kid" Ichibē said with a taunting grin, expecting Ichigo to send one back.

To which Ichigo just nodded.

Then Ichigo raised his palms, his right palm being horizontal while his left being vertical and supporting his right one from behind.

And then took a deep breath.

It had been a long time since he had casted this Kidō. Precisely 2 years ago.

And even at that time, he wasn't able to cast it in time and because of that Uryu-

'No, there is no time to think about that' Ichigo thought as he let go of the previous memory and focused on remembering the chant.

"I got this" Ichigo told himself before starting.

"The broken sword of Takemikazuchi ! The illness that haunts Binzuru-Sonja ! The dead midorigo in the hands of Jizo ! The fire caused by Raijin ! And the weakness of Ungyo!-"

By the time Ichigo had said these words, thunder and sharp winds had started to gather around Ichigo's right palm and around the room. He put more pressure on his left palm that was stabilizing his right and continued the chant.

"- Come together in the wrath of your of your mercy! Mould together and form the hinges of the door towards the light of terror! And repair the broken gates of despair!-"

"Kirinji ! I haven't heard of this Kidō or this chant !" Nimiya yelled over the noise of the wind and thunder.

"Do you think I have?!" Kirinji yelled back.

"- Bakudō number Hyakuyon! Hisomeru!"

Suddenly all that energy that was floating around violently paused in mid air, as if it was thinking about what to do next and it confused the Royal Guard.

The energy then rapidly concentrated into a bright purple ball in front of Ichigo's right palm and then expanded into a very big translucent vertical disk that almost reached the roof of the room. Which in fact was very high.

The disk had all sorts of Japanese scriptures over it and had sub disks inside that kept on rotating slowly.

Ichigo let down his hands and he kept them over his knees as sweat rolled down his face.

"What in the world is that?!" Kirio asked as she broke the unendurable silence.

Ichigo pretended not to hear her and then pushed the air in front of the disk lightly that sent the disk backwards, towards the soul king.

The disk when reached a meter near the soul king, it started to divide into it's sub parts, now that could be called rings.

The rings then took the shape of an ellipse, similar to the soul king's capsule and soon wrapped around the capsule.

Then soon the rings turned bright purple that almost blinded everyone for a moment before they completely disappeared.

It took a few moments for everyone to make sure that everything had gone back to normal before they relaxed.

"Bakudō Hyakuyon?! Do you realize what Hyakuyon means boy?" Kirinji asked as he walked towards the soul king's capsule and examined it, making sure it was okay.

"Hyakuyon means 104. And only 100 Hadō and 100 Bakudō exist boy" Senjumaru said as even she had her calculative gaze all over the capsule.

But Ichigo wasn't hearing anything. There was a dull ringing in his years and everything was silent to him. His eyes showed mashed up images, ones that he couldn't identify.

"Kurosaki?" Senjumaru asked again, checking if the boy was paying any attention.

Which he wasn't.

Ichigo's left hand reached out for his head, holding it as if his head was going to fall off any second.

"What's wron-"

"Hey are you oka-"

"Hey Kid don't di-"

But all the words were futile as they blurred into nothing.

His mind wasn't able to focus on a single thing. He tried to his best to listen to what he was being told.

He shook his head and looked up again, in hope that he will be able to see now.

He hoped too much.

And out of nowhere, the broken body of the capsule cane into his view.

His eyes widened as he turned his head around swiftly to look around, his vision shivering every now and then.

Before him was the destroyed Soul King palace. 2 to 3 lieutenants and some seated soul reapers lying there, covered in their own blood.

It didn't take long for the rotten smell to reach him, he almost threw up then and there.

But now he had gotten used to it.

"Oh so you have come again Kurosaki Ichigo?"

He looked back so fast that someone might think he got a whiplash.

Before him was Aiwach, in all his might. Not a single wound or scratch on his terrifying body.

Ichigo's one hand reached behind his back while the other reached for his waist.

Only for both of them to grip onto air.

He looked at his empty back and his empty waist.

Oh no.

"ICHIGO-" Aiwach yelled and Ichigo covered his eyes with arms, hoping to nullify the attack.

"-KUROSAKI !"

Ichigo jumped awake at his name being called out.

And on instinct he reached for his swords, again only to feel his hands grip onto air.

His thought process took off into a wild start after that.

'Where are they? What happened to Aiwach?! I need to do something. Where are my swor-'

"It's alright. They are right here" Kirinji said as he held both of the swords in front of Ichigo calmly.

Ichigo hesitated for a second before he realised where he was and sighed.

But still being a bit shriveled up by the dream, he sat up straight, took his swords and kept them as close to him as possible.

"You are at-"

"I know where I am" Ichigo interrupted Kirinji as he looked around at the familiar emergency clinic that was in the Soul King's building.

He then saw Kirinji walk over to a desk at the wall opposite to him and sit down to do some paperwork.

"What happened?" Ichigo asked as he put his swords on the small desk that was beside his hospital bed.

"Well first it looked like you were having a hell of a headache or migraine, I don't know. Then you just straight up fainted on us" Kirinji said as he pointed at a glass of water with his thumb without looking back from his work.

Ichigo looked at the desk again, thinking how he was so dazed to not even notice the glass of water earlier.

"How long was I out?" Ichigo asked as he took the glass gratefully.

"What? You don't wanna know why you fainted or something?"

"Why would I?"

Kirinji looked behind from his work as his arm rested on the chair's head and he raised his eyebrows at him.

"What?" Ichigo asked innocently.

And then he gave him a look that said 'I am going to have a talk about this with you' while Ichigo just shrugged.

"You were out for a few hours, 6 hours at max" Kirinji said as he got back to writing some documents.

"Okay that's good. Not much time is wasted" Ichigo said as he set the glass of water on the desk beside his Zanpaktō and got down.

Kirinji turned around his head again, only to find Ichigo yank the IV off his arm and then stretch his arms as if he didn't just do that.

As if that wasn't enough, Ichigo walked over to a glass cabinet at the end of the room, opened it and took 3 painkillers without thinking twice.

Then he started stretching his arms and legs and then said,

"Alright, ready to go"

By this time Kirinji's veins were near to popping.

Before Ichigo could walk out that door, he pulled him back from his collar and pushed him against a wall, ready to yell.

"What the hell do you think you were doing?!"

"Uh, I was about to go out?" Ichigo tried.

"You just yanked an IV out of your arms and then you took three . . .THREE painkillers?! And then you stretched out as if your body is all good and healthy to go out and play soccer?! What's wrong with you?!"

Ichigo flinched at the yelling but he seriously didn't think that what he did was wrong.

'I mean, I am a doctor too but-' Ichigo's thought process just stopped after this as he suddenly remembered an old memory.

One that was long ago, before the war even started.

"Don't you have anything to say?" Kirinji asked as he glared at the boy.

"I mean-"

Suddenly he remembered it. He remembered Isshin's clinic. He remembered when he was small, around 7 years old, Isshin would tell him to warn any patients to not remove IV needles if they tried.

But why had he forgotten about it?

"I am . . . sorry" Ichigo said and Kirinji all of a sudden felt a pang of worry.

"Y-You thought what you were doing was perfectly okay?" Kirinji asked as he let go of Ichigo's collar.

Ichigo didn't reply and Kirinji just sighed and said,

"Wow, you need medical training"

"I am a doctor"

"Yeah right, and I am an engineer" Kirinji said as he waited for Ichigo to laugh.

Which he clearly didn't.

"Wait what kind of psychopath doctor are you?!" Kirinji yelled as he grabbed Ichigo's collar once again.

"And NOBODY takes three painkillers for a headache" Kirinji added as he flicked a finger at Ichigo's forehead.

"Well I made sure my patients didn't do what I did. I did this out of habit" Ichigo said as he scratched his forehead with a pout and continued to look at the wall that was behind Kirinji.

He still wasn't able to look at anyone, into their eyes or even just look at their faces.

"Out of habit?" Kirinji asked as he let Ichigo down again and looked at the boy curiously.

Nothing was making sense. Whatever Ichigo was doing, it sounded completely idiotic.

Then like a time bomb going off, he had an idea of what might have happened.

Suddenly he took Ichigo's right arm and looked at it, hoping he was wrong.

Which he wasn't.

There it was. All he could see were spots. Spots of needle insertions.

And that was when everything fit in like a puzzle.

"Ichigo, when was the last time you had eaten anything?" Kirinji asked in such a serious demanour that it seemed like the person in front of him would spit out the answer even if he hadn't asked.

"Last time? Let me think . . . "

A little more than just a few seconds passed by and Kirinji had enough.

"It won't be that hard to remember the last time you ate damn y-"

"Last time I ate I was with Kirio San" Ichigo interrupted.

"And w-when was the last time you saw Kirio?"

"I don't know . . . maybe 7 months ago?" Ichigo tried to remember correctly.

Kirinji's eyes widened and he took Ichigo's arm before the boy protest and then both of them flashstepped away and out of the soul king's building.

"Okay, first we are going to go to my palace to heal you. Apparently this emergency medical clinic won't be enough. Then we will be going to Kirio's palace to feed you as much as we can" Kirinji said with a determined look.

Ichigo wanted to protest, he really did. But those three painkillers were finally taking effect as he had now started to feel sleepy.

"C'mon buddy, you are getting a full health checkup before you leave the Royal Guard premises" Kirinji said as he pulled on Ichigo's arm again, ready to run.

* * *

"C'mon don't make so much noise!" Young Uryu whispered at Ichigo.

"What am i supposed to do?! This window is really tall!" Young Ichigo whispered back, almost ready to cry.

Uryu just rolled his eyes and pulled Ichigo up the white window and shut it quickly.

"Phew that was close!" Uryu said as he jumped down the stool he was standing on.

Both of them removed their raincoats and set them near the window, thankful their clothes didn't get wet in the rain.

Then Uryu noticed something about Ichigo.

"Why are you wearing a Karate uniform?"

Ichigo just pouted a bit and asked,

"Then why are you wearing a shirt and shorts?"

"That's not even a valid question!" Uryu half yelled.

"Fine! I go to karate classes, you happy?"

"What was so hard about just saying that" Uryu said with a sigh.

"Huh? Why are the lights off?" Ichigo asked all of a sudden.

"Eh?! Even I don't know why!" Uryu almost yelled as he noticed it now too.

Ichigo looked at Uryu, he was able to get a decent look at the boy because of the light that was coming from the window.

"You are scared of the dark aren't you?" Ichigo asked as he held back his laughter.

"No i am not!" Uryu said with a huff.

"Sureeeeee" Ichigo said as he walked towards where he thought the light switch was.

He flicked it but it didn't seem like it was working.

"What are we going to do now?" Uryu asked.

"Well let's walk out carefully and try not to fall" Ichigo suggested.

"Yeah we would totally not fall with you being so clumsy" Uryu said sarcastically as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

On their way here Ichigo had caused the both of them to fall into 5 puddles.

"Well you have a better idea?" Ichigo asked as he had already started walking out.

"Wait for me!" Uryu said as he soon joined Ichigo.

They kept walking in the narrow hallway until they reached the hall.

"I can't see anything from here" Ichigo said as he squinted his eyes.

"Me too" Uryu said.

"Well there is a dining hall ahead, we have a fireplace there, want to go there? There would be light too" Uryu said as he pointed straight ahead.

"How is there a fireplace in a flat?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"It's not the one that uses a chimney" Uryu said and started walking forward.

Ichigo just shrugged and was going to walk behind Uryu when he heard some noises.

Uryu apparently had heard it too and had stopped.

Then looked at each other and nodded before going in that direction.

They were able to hear the words clearly as they came closer.

Uryu rested his ears on the door and Ichigo did as well.

"What happened?" Isshin asked in a annoyed tone as he saw Masaki and Katagiri laying in bed, who seemed to be sound asleep.

"I don't know . . . I remember all 4 of us getting drunk and then i guess . . . we passed out?" Ryuken asked as he scratched his head in similar annoyance.

"Agh why can't i remember anything!" Isshin finally said with a exasperated sigh.

"Hey, weren't they talking to a guy when we sneaked out?" Uryu asked, concerned.

"Now i am kinda regretting sneaking out" Ichigo said.

"But you were the one that wanted to show me the place where you saw a girl jump!" Uryu whispered angrily.

"She didn't jump! That's why I wanted to make sure she was okay!" Ichigo whispered back angrily.

"Okay let's just stop! Let's think what they are talking about, it's better than fighting" Uryu said and Ichigo nodded in agreement.

"They don't seem to reme-" Ichigo was cut off as the door suddenly opened and both of them fell on their faces and into the room.

"Uryu, what have i told you about eavesdropping?" Ryuken said as he glared at the child similar to the way he would glare at his enemy.

Isshin gave an awakward smile as he waved his hands in front of Ryuken, stopping him from glaring at a kid.

"I am s-sure they had a good enough reason. Right kids?" Isshin asked.

Ichigo just nodded brightly and said,

"The lights were out and we didn't know where to find you guys. So we just looked around untill we heard your voices"

"Hey look! They have lit candles here!" Uryu said with a relaxed posture.

"Yeah he is not scared of the dark at all" Ichigo whispered to himself.

Ryuken's shoulders relaxed and not because of the fact that the kid's didn't hear them, but for the fact that Isshin stepped in at the right time.

Ryuken had a bad habit of overreacting and never hearing the other person's side before thinking or doing anything.

"So what did you guys do today? I mean we were out partying so we deserve to get scolded by you" Isshin said with a chuckle as he bent down and ruffled both of their heads.

"Out partying?" Uryu asked as he raised an eyebrow at the statement.

"Yeah, what i mean is, we were out since today morning-"

"But you came at our house just a few hours ago" Uryu interrupted.

Isshin gave the boy a questioning look before looking at Ryuken with the same look.

"What do you mean?" Isshin asked again.

"Me and mom were coming back here from my karate class and then i saw a girl, trying to jump down the river. I even tried to save her but mom caught me and the girl vanished, i guess she ran away. But I am pretty sure she didn't jump. I don't remember anything in between but then i woke up in mid way while coming here. Then this mister took me inside to meet Uryu" Ichigo said as he pointed at Ryuken then at Uryu with his thumb.

"And then a man came in and you and Mr.Isshin talked to him about something" Uryu said, as he naturally didn't mention the part where Ichigo and him had decided to sneak a peak at what they were doing.

"What did the man look like?" Isshin asked, now getting anxious.

"He looked like a normal guy . . . " Ichigo said as he tried to remember.

"Oh i remember something!" Uryu said brightly.

Isshin and Ryuken looked at Uryu hopefully who then said,

"That man was wearing a dress!"

Isshin and Ryuken just blinked.

"And then you talked to him about something and all three of you walked into this room and then we don't know what happened. We heard some yelling though" Ichigo said with a hand under his chin.

**(Ichigo and Uryu don't know what a shihakusho is called lol)**

Various images of something they shouldn't think of came into their minds and Isshin and Ryuken blushed.

"Okay, no more talking about this!" Isshin said rapidly as he let all the children out and closed the door.

"Wow i guess they drank alot" Ichigo whispered with a hand under his chin while the door slammed shut behind him.

"What did they drink?" Uryu asked innocently.

"Huh? You don't know? They obviously had alcohol" Ichigo said as he gave a 'Are you kidding?' look to Uryu.

"How do you know that?" Uryu asked at the gaining of this new information.

"Well i obviously know that because . . . because . . . Wait, how do i know that? Wait why do i also know what a hangover is?" Ichigo asked with a incredulous look.

Uryu just sighed and decided to not ask what 'Hangover' meant.

* * *

Isshin looked at Ryuken and said,

"So we got drunk AFTER Maksaki returned with Ichigo and then we called a male prostitute?"

"Shush! Don't say that out loud idiot!" Ryuken yelled as he anxiously looked at the door, just in case the kids were still outside.

"But-" Isshin was cut off as Ryuken's expression turned serious.

"What Ichigo said about the riverside, where he saw a girl and she vanished . . . Do you think he saw a soul?" Ryuken asked.

"It's expected that he could get spiritual awareness but i didn't think it would be so quick" Isshin said as he agreed too.

"And what I don't get is how did we forget how long ago we met. I thought we met at the supermarket today at 8 o clock or something and decided to have a meet up. But the kids say that we met in the evening and that too because of an weird incident. And even if we are very drunk, then also we wouldn't call someone to you know . . ." Isshin trailed off at the last sentence.

"And why did we even decide to meet in the first place?" Ryuken asked with a sigh as he walked over to Masaki and Katagiri and covered them with another blanket he had picked out from a drawer beside the bed as it was getting cold.

"Something doesn't feel right . . . " Isshin said.

"And why didn't they wake up during all of the commotion the kids caused just now?" Ryuken asked with a concerned look.

Isshin pondered over it for a few minutes before he sighed and said,

"Maybe the kids are making up stories and we are too hungover. Even Masaki and Katagiri must be, that's why they didn't wake up. Let's just sleep"

Ryuken wanted to argue but his sore muscles said something else.

"We shouldn't have slept on the floor. Which bar did we even go to? I want to sue them"

"And for what exactly? It's our fault, we were careless" Isshin said as he started to walk out the door.

Suddenly he heard a phone ringing. He looked behind to see Masaki's phone ringing.

He walked over to the desk and without reading the name he picked up the call and put it on speaker. Ryuken right beside him, hearing too.

"Hello?" Isshin asked as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Um uh Hello Mr.Isshin. I uh, I am Orihime Inoue. I just wanted to know when you are coming back cause I don't know what i should feed Yuzu and Karin" Young Orihime's voice wavered a bit as she talked nervously.

Isshin's eyes widened at the news and then he looked at the number that had called.

It was their home's intercom.

"Wait, why or how in the world did i leave you, a kid, there instead of a babysitter?!" Isshin asked in shock as he had already started to pick up his jacket and umbrella from the hanger nearby.

Ryuken was ready as well as he picked up the car keys from near the fireplace in the dining room while young Uryu and Ichigo followed him around, wondering what happened.

"Uh don't you remember!?" Orihime asked, shocked herself.

Isshin paused in his tracks, sweat running down his face.

And as if a bucket of ice was thrown on his face, he remembered.

_-Flashback-_

_Isshin put his phone down and quickly ran upstairs to pick up his jacket and an umbrella._

_He__ had called Ryuken to tell him something was wrong with Masaki._

_He knew that because he had started to feel spiritual pressure, which shouldn't have been possible if Masaki was alive and healthy._

_But he__ also felt Masaki's weak spiritual pressure. So he knew she was just weak but alive. And currently walking towards the nearest safe place._

_Ryuken's__ house._

_Then on__ his way out the door, an 4 year old Karin held Isshin's leg along with Yuzu on the other leg._

_'Oh my god i totally forgot about them!' Isshin thought rapidly._

_"Papa going?" Karin asked with a light glare, as if asking Isshin to not go._

_"Where? Where?" Yuzu asked as she looked like she was about to cry._

_'What__ should i do? What should i do?! If i call a babysitter now then it would take her an hour to arrive! I don't have that much time!' Isshin thought as he looked around until his eyes fell on the open door in front of him._

_He saw__ Orihime running down the road in a pink dress and a bag in her hands, and she was fully soaked in __rain._

_He__ remembered Orihime clearly. She was the one who had bought her brother, Sora, into his clinic. She seemed like a mature kid and probably needed a place to shelter herself from the rain._

_"You girls wait here" Isshin said as he ran as fast as he could._

_"Inoue chan!" Isshin called out._

_Orihims__ looked behind and stopped_ _running. She held her bag over her head to stop the rain._

_She really wanted to go home but she can't, not on the face of the person who has helped her alot._

_"Ah hello Mr.Kurosaki, what can i-"_

_"Can you do me a favour?"__Orihime looked at him and nodded with a smile._

_"Sure!"_

_-End of flashback-_

He had left a kid to babysit his daughters for so long and that wasn't even the most important thing right now.

Suddenly Ryuken came back into the room, his expression being the same as Isshin.

"So you remember too?" Isshin asked as he crouched and ran a hand through his hair.

"Yeah, i saw a knife stabbed deep into the wall near the fireplace and wondered why" Ryuken said as he stood beside Isshin.

"What are you planning to do?" Ryuken asked after a minute's silence.

"He will come to me when he is ready" Isshin said as he got up and proceeded to walk out the door.

Right now his daughters needed him more, his son would come when the time comes.

"C'mon Uryu and Ichigo, let's go to my house. Uryu you can stay over, Masaki and Katagiri seem to be in a deep sleep today, you won't be getting the bed tonight. Ryuken will just sleep here on the couch" Isshin said with a smile while Ryuken nodded at his decision.

"I will drive" Ryuken said as he held up his car keys.

They all walked out the door and took the elevator down and got straight into the car without a word. Except Ichigo and Uryu who were talking about all the games they would play tonight.

Ryuken started driving but every now and then he would look at Isshin who would continue staring at the droplets that formed on the car's window.

He kept tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. He was getting impatient.

He wanted to know so much more about the future and how was Ichigo planning to change it.

But the second he remembered that Ichigo's face, he stopped.

While on this side Ryuken was getting worked up over the fact that he didn't know anything about the future, Isshin was getting annoyed by something else.

"Gosh just shut off the wiper!" Isshin all of a sudden yelled.

"I can't!" Ryuken yelled back.

"Why not?!" Isshin asked as he reached out for the wiper handle.

"Cause it's freaking raining!" Ryuken yelled in obvious factism and slapped Isshin's hand away.

"Then stop the rain!" Isshin said with a huff as he got back to staring out the window.

'Oh so that's what this is about. Rain. I thought he really got irritated by the sound of wiper. But again that is something i can expect from him' Ryuken thought as he shook his head a bit pushed his glasses up.

"I obviously can't and even if I could then why should I?" Ryuken said as he calmed down too but still seemed irritated.

"Because Ichigo doesn't like it" Isshin said.

"What? I like the rain very much!" young Ichigo yelled in excitement from the back seat.

"You don't speak in between!" Isshin yelled at Ichigo, glancing behind only for a second.

"Why not?" Ichigo asked out of nowhere. His tone so flat and threatening that he wouldn't recognize his own voice if asked.

Ryuken had never in his life applied breaks so fast.

Ryuken looked at Isshin in shock who seemed to have the same expression.

"Ha ha Ichigo obviously didn't mean what he said right?" Uryu asked nervously as he elbowed Ichigo lightly.

"I meant what I said" Ichigo said with a huff as he folded his arms.

Ryuken was going to say something but Isshin beat him to it,

"Ichigo Kurosaki, I don't want this kind of behaviour from you again. Am I clear?"

"But what did I do wrong?" Ichigo asked.

Ryuken was now getting nervous. Why was Ichigo talking like that and why was Isshin getting so angry?

The pitter patter of the rain on the glass window was the only thing that was making any noise, everything else was in dead silence.

"You don't talk when adults are talking" Isshin explained calmly.

"But I can talk if you are talking about me" Ichigo declared.

And before Isshin could say anything Ichigo added,

"Especially if you are yelling in front of two children"

Ryuken was ready to stop Isshin from doing something he would regret later but Isshin's next move made him rethink what good he did in his life.

"Okay, I am sorry" Isshin said as he reached out towards the back seat and ruffled Ichigo's hair.

And it didn't even take more than 3 seconds for Ichigo to smile brightly at Isshin again before he continued talking to Uryu.

Isshin gave Ryuken a look before both of them slowly turned in front and kept staring at the road ahead. Thankfully, this was one of the least busiest roads.

"So wanna talk ab-" Ryuken started.

"Nope. I have an idea but not right now" Isshin said as through the rear view mirror he saw Ichigo's eyes, just for a second look at Isshin's seat, but the boy's smile never wavered.

This meant Ichigo was still listening.

"You know that he had to do that right? I mean the memory thing" Ryuken asked as he mentioned Ichigo, older Ichigo.

They were driving again, after absorbing what had happened and they were talking in a way only someone who knows the situation would understand.

"I know that but still . . . It's just so unfair"

How this boy smiled and laughed at everything while the other had to go through war and deaths, that was what seemed unfair to him.

Ryuken decided it wasn't a right time to start a conversation about older Ichigo so he decided to change the topic.

"What about Inoue san? You should thank her in some way" Ryuken suggested.

Isshin noticed the shift in topic and couldn't agree more with it.

"Well i can ask her to stay over too. I will give the three kids a treat" Isshin said with a shrug.

"Won't Inoue's parents-"

"They are dead. And her brother died too" Isshin whispered, so that the kids couldn't hear.

Ryuken almost didn't apply breaks when a car showed up in front of them, almost.

"Then who takes care of her? She is just 9 !" Ryuken asked in shock and sympathy.

"Her aunt sends her some money every month and calls her once in 2 days. And sometimes Masaki checks up on her too, but Ichigo doesn't know that"

"And she is more mature than our two idiots behind. She may seem air headed but knows what to do and when to do it" Isshin added as he looked behind at Ichigo and Uryu with a chuckle.

"Why does your family care so much about a random girl from school?" Ryuken asked as he turned into the road that led to Kurosaki clinic.

"Well his brother died in our hospital. She was devastated by it. We kinda think it's our fault and Masaki just feels sympathy towards her. Masaki says that she is Ichigo's classmate and that's why she is helping her, but I don't go against her sympathy for the kid cause I fell the same" Isshin said as they finally reached the clinic.

Ryuken nodded in understanding and turned behind and said,

"Be a good boy and don't trouble Isshin too much"

Uryu just nodded in excitement.

"And behave yourselves around Inoue san too, she is a lot more understanding and mature than you baka" Isshin said as he turned behind too.

**(Baka means idiot)**

"Inoue san? You mean the girl from our class?" Uryu asked and Isshin nodded as he picked up his umbrella.

"Who is Inoue?" Ichigo asked.

"She is in our class! Don't you know?" Uryu asked as he picked up his raincoat and started wearing it.

"Uhhhh No?" Ichigo said with a sheepish look while Uryu just sighed threw Ichigo's raincoat at him.

"Not good with names and faces? Sounds like someone i know" Ryuken said with a smirk while Isshin just glared at him.

"And please, remind me not to drive with you again" Isshin said as he recalled all the times Ryuken almost got everyone into an accident today.

"Let's go kids!" Isshin said with a big grin and exited the car, the kids right behind them.

Ryuken watched Isshin's back retreat into the house. And when Isshin turned to close the door, he glanced at Ryuken in a way that Ryuken knew something was up.

Not with Isshin but with him.

He looked around the car and then finally looked at the road ahead and almost yelped in suprise.

Standing there was Urahara Kisuke in his national uniform and a black umbrella.

The man slapped shut his iconic white fan and with a smile he said,

"We have something to talk about I think,

Ryuken Ishida"

Ryuken continued staring for a few more seconds before sending a nod in the man's direction.

Then he sighed as he looked at the rain outside.

The rain falling in all it's glory.

* * *

**P.S.~**

**Pikanet128: Hope to do the same later as well!**

**A**** Queen Among Woman: Thank you so much! And I am glad you liked the inner world part cause according to me, his Zanpaktōs being a parts of his soul must have an important role in his life and even in the background, they have their own lives too! So I am glad to hear that my opinion isn't wrong! Thanks again!**

**Zeynel: Thanks for the compliment! And to be honest even I want to see how their future is going to turn out now cause they literally met 8 years earlier than they should have! And now Inoue too! And the thing about Isshin being pissed haha You were totally spot on! He is pissed but he knows his son doesn't need him to be pissed right now! Considering how Ichigo reacted when Isshin yelled at him, he probably knows he has to hold back his anger! Thanks again for reading and I hope you keep reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**Thank you to everyone who comment at and like my work! **

**Lol it's my birthday so I thought I would suprise the readers by giving them a chapter earlier than usual!**

**I am also posting this earlier cause I have a lot of time on my hands and currently I am not writing 'Avenging the souls lost'. Which I should and WILL but I wanted a change of pace so I wrote this!**

* * *

Ryuken glanced at Urahara that was sitting beside him on the passenger's seat.

The man hadn't spoken a thing since he had entered the vehicle and he looked dead set up upon something.

He was looking out the window all this time so Ryuken had taken to doing the same thing.

And after sometime, 20 mins had passed.

"Where are we going any-" Ryuken started but was cut off by Kisuke.

"Not now"

Ryuken just sighed and impatiently tapped his finger on the steering wheel.

Then began another round of looking at the window and playing with the car keys.

Now more than 40 mins had passed and Kisuke still hadn't said anything.

"We can't just stand here all day you know? Why are we standing in front of the clinic anyways?" Ryuken asked again as he tried to maintain his calm composure.

"Wait for it" Kisuke said and looked at Ryuken with a knowing look and then suddenly looked out the window again.

Kisuke wiped the fog that had formed on the window and through Kisuke's window Ryuken could clearly see Isshin talking to a woman in her early twenties.

She seemed to be carrying a bag that apparently had kid's supplies?

"Why did he call a babysitter? Where is he going?" Ryuken asked but his doubts faded away as he saw Isshin seeing the woman go inside his house while he himself walked towards the car and sat behind them.

"Let's go" Isshin said as he gave his house one final look and tapped Ryuken's seat in gesture for him to start the car.

Ryuken gave Isshin a look through the rear view mirror that clearly stated what he was thinking.

'It's okay' Isshin's expression said.

"I will tell you when we reach there" Kisuke said as he rested an assuring hand on Ryuken's shoulder.

Both of them were treating him as if he needed comfort but all he needed to know was where they were planning to go.

"But can you guys tell me where do we need to go so that I can at least drive you there!" Ryuken finally asked as he looked at both of them as if they had lost a screw.

"Oh so you were asking that! Should have just asked~" Kisuke said with a sheepish smile as he flapped his fan.

And before Ryuken could say anything else Isshin said,

"Take us to Urahara shoten"

Sensing the seriousness in Isshin's voice Ryuken turned and looked at the man.

He saw the fire of determination and the want for reassurance flowing out in waves from Isshin's eyes.

"Okay" Ryuken said without any further questions

* * *

**-Two hours earlier in soul palace-**

"You shouldn't sleep in a hot bath you idiot!" Kirinji said as he carried an half unconscious Ichigo into the Grain palace.

Kirio looked up from her cooking regime as she heard some noises.

She walked over to the exit and slid the curtains open slightly.

"I-I am s-sorry" Ichigo said in between his ragged breathing.

"What happened?" Kirio asked as he noticed the boy's condition.

Ichigo's hair was a complete mess while his Shihakusho has been poorly made. Sweat was rolling down his face and he seemed flushed all over.

Someone might mistakenly think he is seriously sick but Kirio knew the boy was okay when he left for the emergency clinic.

And she also hadn't heard what had happened, so she wanted to know. That's why she walked over to the pair.

Getting a good look at the boy and feeling like an overprotective mother, she glared at Kirinji for doing whatsoever he had done.

"What? Don't look at me like that! It's all his fault!" Kirinji said as he caught the boy from slipping again.

"This idiot slept in the healing hot tub when we were at Kirinden!" Kirinji added as he threw **(not literally)** Ichigo on one of the chairs of the dining room.

**(Kirinden is Kirinji's city. His hot springs not only heal but also strengthen a person)**

"I a-already told you it w-was because of the p-pain killers I took" Ichigo almost grunted back.

"Was I the one who told you to do that?!" Kirinji yelled again.

"And you can't even eat much now! With all that painkiller you have flowing around in your system!" Kirinji added.

"Then you should have told me that we were coming to Gatonden earlier" Ichigo calmly explained.

**(Gatonden is Kirio's city. Her food replenishes reiatsu completely)**

"How am I supposed to do that when you do whatever pleases you!" Kirinji yelled again.

'Honestly, this young boy seems more calm and collected than Kirinji' Kirio thought as she shook her head.

Kirio just sighed at the argument both of them were having and then noticed something.

"Ichigo! Your hair is all wet, you will catch a cold this way!" Kirio said as she snatched a towel that was hanging on Kirinji's shoulders and started drying Ichigo's hair herself.

Ichigo flinched at the sudden action and snatched the towel away from Kirio's hand rapidly without thinking twice.

Kirio was taken back and she looked at Ichigo with concern, who for the matter had realised what he had done.

After a few seconds of silence Ichigo sighed, gave a small smile and continued.

"You were cooking a meal for the other members weren't you? It would be bad if I interrupted you in between. I will dry my hair myself. I know how much you love cooking" Ichigo said as politely as he could as he walked towards the exit of the Grain palace and stood just outside the palace's wall.

The second he was out of sight, he crouched down slowly and let the towel cover his face.

"Why did I do that?" Ichigo asked himself as he kept staring at the small scratch he had gotten when he had pulled the towel out of Kirio's hands.

"Why did I do that? Why can't I just be normal with them? The way it used to be . . ." Ichigo thought as he let his hands press the towel against his face, it's coldness being the only thing keeping him calm.

Senjumaru had been standing close enough to hear Ichigo but was far enough that he won't sense her spiritual pressure, in terms of her compressive capabilities of course.

She had some important information to that she needed to convey to Ichigo. But she didn't think the situation was appropriate.

"I know you are there Senjumaru san" Ichigo said casually as he removed the towel from over his head and looked up.

'Well here goes nothing' Senjumaru thought after a few seconds of hesitation.

walked out from behind a wall with Ichigo crouching against the wall right in front of her.

"What's up?" Ichigo asked as he sensed the seriousness in her facade.

"I have some news for you" Senjumaru said as she held a coat and a headband in front of Ichigo.

Ichigo looked at the brown and blue clothing items in Shutara's hand and remembered them to be the ones he had used when he had to jump back into soul society during the Thousand Year Blood War.

"Where am I going?" Ichigo asked as he got up and took them from Senjumaru's hands.

"To Urahara shoten" Senjumaru said.

To his own surprise, it didn't startle Ichigo that he was going to Urahara's place all of a sudden.

Ichigo just nodded and then looked at Senjumaru. It looked like she wanted to ask something but she couldn't.

"What's wrong? Got anything else to say?" Ichigo asked.

"Well I was wondering why you didn't ask how I knew your clothing measurements" Senjumaru said.

"Well you probably took them when I was sleeping. And to be honest I wasn't surprised. Even the shihakusho I am wearing right now was made by you. And this headband and this coat is totally similar to the one you had made for me the first time" Ichigo said as he held up the coat in front of him and examined it just for making sure if it really was.

"Yeah it really is similar. No difference at all" Ichigo confirmed.

"It must be because I make clothes that suit the person's look. And you must have not changed at all. And being a soul reaper, you are going to be a teenager for another 500 years. That is, if you don't get yourself killed" Senjumaru said with light humour.

"I figured" Ichigo said as he got ready to flashstep towards an empty room where he could straiten out his Shihakusho which Kirinji had carelessly draped over him.

"You don't want to know why Urahara has called you?" Senjumaru asked just before Ichigo could leave.

Ichigo turned around to look at Senjumaru again and said,

"I kind of have an idea on what this is about. And I wanted to have a talk with him anyways"

"I see" Senjumaru said as she stared at the wooden floor, as if she wanted to say something else.

This time Ichigo didn't need to ask what was up as she had made up her mind already.

"You . . ." Senjumaru started but hesitated.

"I what?" Ichigo asked as he looked at her innocently.

"You are . . . going to erase our memories, aren't you?" Senjumaru asked.

No one spoke for a few seconds before Ichigo sighed.

'I see, so that is what this was about . . .' Ichigo thought with a grim look before relaxing his shoulders.

"Yes I am. But don't worry, in some years or a decade at most, I am going to see you guys again" Ichigo said with a ghost of a smile.

"I see. Here take this" Senjumaru said as she threw a lighter at Ichigo.

"Memory replacement? When did you take this from me?" Ichigo asked with a light scowl.

"When you were sleeping" Senjumaru said with a playful smirk.

"Did you do anything with it?" Ichigo asked as he tried sensing any different reiatsu signatures that might be coming off as a result of altering.

"I did. I intensified it's effects. So when you do push the button, it will make us pass out for longer periods"

"But why?"

"Well when jump down from here, we will be able to sense that someone has passed dimensions because-"

"-the Ōken keeps the path clear for another 6000 seconds" Ichigo completed for Senjumaru.

She nodded approvingly and said,

"And I have opened a senkaimon that will lead to the world of the living. And it will directly place you in front of Urahara shoten"

"Why can't you just open a senkaimon here?" Ichigo asked as his hand went to put the lighter in the leather pouch.

Unconsciously he tried to feel if the Hogyōku and the sword hilt were still in the pouch.

And surprisingly nobody had tried to touch it.

Senjumaru noticed Ichigo's confused expression before she saw his hand inside the pouch.

"Wondering why we didn't take those?" Senjumaru asked flatly.

"Yeah kinda"

Ichigo's honest reply made her smile a bit and she said,

"We don't expertise in that. You might wanna ask Kisuke of what you should do with it"

Ichigo nodded as he closed the pouch and asked,

"So where were we? Right, why can't I use a Senkaimon from here?"

"We would be able to sense that too. It's reiatsu waves that is. They will roam around for a longer time if compared to you jumping down and then using a senkaimon" Senjumaru said.

"And even if I go down and then try to use the senkaimon, won't the department of research and development sense me while I travel through the dangai precipice?"

"Well that's where this coat comes in. You probably didn't have this kind of modification in your older coat" Senjumaru said as she took the coat from Ichigo's hands.

Then she wore the coat herself, even though it was very large on her thin frame, it still rested on her shoulders. And as soon as she closed the pin that was inside, she vanished.

Ichigo knew she was in front of him cause he could still sense her.

Then Senjumaru removed the coat, became visible and handed it back to Ichigo.

"Okay so i am safe from the spirit cameras of Dangai and the Royal Palace. Then what about my spiritual pressure? It doesn't hide spiritual pressure so-"

"Well I know you are very good at hiding your spiritual pressure. It's almost so less that the 12th squad might think it was just a misplaced soul. Kind of makes me want to know who taught you?" Senjumaru asked with hopeful eyes.

She still expected Ichigo to hide things. But she was hopeful cause after this her memory will be wiped anyways.

"Old man Yama" Ichigo said casually.

"Well that was kind of unexpected" Senjumaru said with a look of disappointment.

"Anyways-" she continued "- Here is the complete plan, you with me?"

"Yeah" Ichigo said with a determined look.

"Okay. First you change your clothes and be ready. I will have gathered everyone at Gatonden by then. You come and use the memory replacement. As soon as the memory replacement goes off, you jump. Don't think twice or something. Cause after the memory replacement goes off, I have prepared a reiatsu sweep. It will activate in 4 mins, you will have to reach the jump point in 3 mins which I know is quite less if compared to the usual 7 min time range. And you have to leave that last minute for the spiritual sweep to reach the jump point cause it's at lower level, so you HAVE to be there by 3 mins. This way there won't be any trace that you were here"

Senjumaru took a breath in and then continued,

"And I have planned it in such a way that even the spiritual cams will be wiped out. Not completely, but they will regain there memory again when you come back. Your reiatsu will be the password to it's memory. And the memory replacement going off will also be the key of the senkaimon opening. So you have to be fast. The senkaimon will close in 8 hours. And the senkaimon will be protected by a Bakudō untill you reach there. So no one could sense it or enter it. Then we will wake up much after you have reached Urahara shoten" Senjumaru explained and then let out a big breath after speaking so much in one go.

"Wow . . ." was all Ichigo could say.

After a minute of absorbing the information in silence, Ichigo regained his composure and said,

"I don't know how to thank you Senjumaru san"

Senjumaru smiled lightly and said,

"It's nothing compared to what you have done for us Kurosaki. You have given up your youth, your human life . . . everything. And I also wanted to apologize for what we did when you first came here"

"I see, thanks then"

The reason why that's all he could say was because it was the first time someone had thanked him. It wasn't like he wasn't thanked at all in the past. But it was the first time it sounded like an apology rather than a thanks.

And for some reason, he didn't like it.

Without another word Ichigo flashstepped away in search for a room. He could possibly find it anywhere considering every Royal Guard had a city of it's own. And he was currently in one of those cities.

Sometimes he wondered if he had become a Royal Guard when the war wasn't haunting them, then would he have gotten such luxuries too?

And for the matter of fact if he would be provided with such things, then he would actually give up being a Royal Guard. He couldn't handle such things.

He found a room eventually and changed up. He wore the coat and the headband as well.

He won't have any time at all after he would press the memory replacement button. So he wrapped the rest of the head cover around his face.

Last time he only needed the coat and the head cover because it would be damn cold if he jumped from this point, but now he also needed it for becoming invisible.

Now only a bit of his orange hai was peaking out from front, rest was covered up. And of course his eyes were visible as well.

**(I don't know how to explain this look of Ichigo. I tried my best, I guess. I can tell you guys that it's the clothes that he wore to jump down from the Soul Palace in the manga. Google it if you can't understand by description. Sorry *bows*)**

He was back at Gantonden in a few minutes. He was currently invisible and his spiritual pressure was locked down onto the lowest possible level.

He was thankful to his Gentei Reiin again for sealing 80 percent of his powers.

His spiritual pressure right now was almost similar to a strong soul which would be same as having spiritual pressure like Tatsuki, Keigo or Mizuiro who didn't have any powers but could see and sense the spiritual world.

'Tatsuki, Keigo, Mizuiro . . . yeah they didn't have any powers at start, but ended up having powers after exposure to so much spiritual pressure during the war' Ichigo thought of the scenes but shook his head.

'Now's not the time to be thinking of something like that' Ichigo thought again.

"Huh? What's this reiatsu?" Kirinji asked out of nowhere.

Ichigo's eyes widened.

How much reiatsu was he letting out when he was lost in his thoughts?

"Yeah I can sense it too" Kirio added.

"Ichigo . . . " Senjumaru whispered to herself.

Ichigo held in his reiatsu as much as he could again and counted.

'One, two, three, four and five. All five of them are here, okay'

'Here goes nothing' Ichigo thought as he held the silver lighter in his right arm and pressed the button.

Pink smoke surrounded the whole Gantonden which was followed by five thuds.

The Royal Guard were sprawled on the floor but Ichigo didn't wait to notice that.

The spiritual cleanser will activate in 4 minutes and that means he has to cover that 7 min distance in 3 min. The last 1 minute has to be left out for the cleanser to reach till the bottom, that is the lower layer where the Kakaku Ho lands in the Soul Palace.

He wanted to release it, the seal that is. There was no other option. Or else he won't be able to use Sonido or Hirenkyaku.

But he couldn't release it right now. His spiritual pressure would be sensed in Soul Society too if he did that.

So he just increased his speed as much as he could in 20 percent of his power.

The second he reached the jumping point the spiritual cleanser got activated.

"Oh shit" Ichigo said before he put all his strength into that one push and jumped down.

The increased speed caused air rings to form around him as he shot towards the Soul Society.

* * *

**-One hour later-**

"Okay, I even took an hour's nap and I still haven't reached" Ichigo said as he rubbed his eyes and yawned.

For the next few minutes he kept thinking whether the memory replacement worked or not but later he just shrugged it off.

He can at least trust Senjumaru that much. Even she knows how grave the situation could turn if they remembered him.

After a minute he took a deep breath and let it out. He closed his eyes as his tense shoulders finally relaxed.

He was more at ease alone. Right now it didn't feel like he was suffocating even when he was out in the open.

Not surrounded by the people that were once dead.

He wanted to be like this and get his job done but he knew he had to tell at least one person who he really was.

And Kisuke Urahara seemed like the best option.

He was the only that was with him till the end and he is also the only one who could help him out in situations like these.

'And obliviously if I tell Urahara then Tessai, Jinta and Ururu will know too. But that's how it has always been. Kisuke could do something about Jinta and Ururu but I am sure Tessai will know about me' He thought.

He then opened his eyes to look down and see when he was going to get there.

Suddenly he saw a layer of what seemed like white snow.

"Wait, that's not snow!" Ichigo said as he suddenly fell into a deep layer of clouds.

After a few seconds of seeing nothing but white, he was out.

"Gosh" Ichigo said as he shook his wet clothes and hair.

Then when he looked down again his breath got caught up in his throat.

He could see the Soul Society from here, roaring in all it's might.

All the white buildings and red tiled roofs, the huts, the markets, the rivers, the forests and it's people.

Alive.

'Everyone is alive down there . . . ' Ichigo thought with his smallest of smiles as he prepared to land.

He reeled in his spiritual pressure and took a position.

But just like last time, he crash landed.

And just like last time he didn't get hurt or care in any way.

He got up and dusted off the rocks and twigs from his clothes. But he couldn't do anything about the mud that stuck on his clothes.

"Damn those clouds of water and damn this soil" Ichigo said as he tried to rub off as much mud as possible.

Then he looked around, satisfied that his clothes were now okay but then face palmed.

He was sure that his spiritual pressure won't be sensed till the Squad 12 barracks.

But,

"What will I do about this?" Ichigo asked out loud as he looked at the big crater that had formed because of his landing.

He looked around and found the solution right away.

He removed his coat and head cover and placed them on a nearby tree.

"Yeah that can work out" Ichigo said as he walked towards the said 'idea'.

After 5 mins of hard work, he was done.

"Someone should call me a mastermind for this" Ichigo said proudly to himself.

"Rukia would have hit me hard if I had said that in front of her" Ichigo said with a fond smile but soon that smile morphed into a grimace.

"It's okay though, I will save her this time" He assured himself.

'So where is the Senkaimon?' He thought.

He looked around and found it hidden right between some bushes on his left.

'This forest is kinda dense' He thought.

"Which forest is this anyways?"

Ichigo jumped up a few meters and stood there to observe the surroundings of the forest he was in.

He noticed some familiar things that could point to only one thing.

"It's the 78th district. Rukia and Renji's district" Ichigo said as he jumped back down.

"But they have probably turned into Shinigami by now. I am in the past but not hundreds of years into the past" He said as he rested his hands on his waist.

And for some reason he was happy that Rukia and Renji were not in this district currently. He won't be able to see their faces again. At least not until he had prepared himself.

And he wasn't even sure when he will be finally prepared.

He walked towards the tree where he had hung his coat and head cover. While wearing his head cover he thought,

'Do I really need to wear it completely again?'

He didn't need to wear the mask fully this time. He wasn't going to jump down from the senkaimon.

'Wait, or I would have to jump down from the senkaimon if Senjumaru san has a habit of opening senkaimon up in the sky like Kisuke' Ichigo said as a slight scowl took over his face.

Suddenly he blinked at his own expression.

It had been a long time since he had scowled naturally. He had scowled at least twice or thrice since he time travelled.

Usually he used to pretend to scowl in the recent years so people don't think that he had changed much.

Deciding not to think anymore about it, he flashstepped into the senkaimon while the gateway closed behind him. Not leaving a single trace of it's existence.

* * *

Ichigo stepped out of the senkaimon and noticed that he indeed was 600 meters above ground.

"Knew it" Ichigo said.

He made sure not to make a crater when he jumped down this time. Besides, this height wasn't even that much if compared to the location of Soul Palace so he should be okay.

When he jumped down into the moist and crisp air of Karakura town. It was almost midnight here.

It just took him a few seconds before he noticed that he was right in front of the old tattered shop and it didn't take him much more than that to also notice it's undignified owner in front of it.

And obviously Tessai standing right beside Ichigo and so close to his face that it would be easy to guess that, that man has no knowledge of personal space whatsoever.

But it didn't affect Ichigo that much. Him being already habitual to it and also seeing Tessai alive and breathing was another joy.

His thoughts were interrupted as Kisuke finally spoke.

"You can remove the coat now" Kisuke said as he rested his cane over his shoulder.

He wanted to rejoice at Tessai being alive but Kisuke's look said that he was still suspicious of Ichigo.

Why won't he be? In this timeline nobody knows who Ichigo is.

Honestly it didn't even suprise Ichigo that Kisuke knew what he was wearing or how Tessai knew where he was standing.

Without another word Ichigo did what he was told. He removed the coat and gave it to Tessai who had been standing there like a cloth hanger.

He then went for the head cover but his hands paused mid way as he hesitated for a minute.

If he removed this now then this would be it. Kisuke will guess who he is within a second's span and then he will remember him forever.

But what needs to be done has to be done.

He removed the head cover and handed it to Tessai as well.

Then he looked straight into Kisuke's eyes who did the same in the most serious facade

And before he knew it, the man relaxed his shoulders and with a cheeky grin said,

"You have Isshin's eyes"

Ichigo couldn't help but smile a little at Kisuke's habit of taking everything lightly.

Then Kisuke gestured Tessai to take Ichigo inside while he started walking towards the road.

"Where are you going?" Ichigo asked just before Kisuke flashstepped away.

Kisuke paused as he turned to look at Ichigo.

"Well Kurosaki san, you don't just use a memory replacement. You have to clean up the place afterwards as well" Kisuke said as he out of nowhere threw something towards Ichigo's face.

Ichigo caught it naturally, just an inch away from his face and noticed it was a knife.

"What were you thinking idiot!" Ichigo said as he held the knife away from his face.

"Look closely" Tessai said.

Ichigo paused and looked at the knife in his left hand again.

"Wait that's-"

"-the knife you had thrown at Isshin at Ryuken's house" Kisuke completed for him and flashstepped away

"Let's go inside. I need to give you a gigai" Tessai said as he went in first, not feeling the need to tell Ichigo in which direction he needs to go.

* * *

**-Back in real time-**

"So is anybody going to tell me why we are here?" Ryuken asked as he parked his car beside Urahara's shop.

"Well even i don't what this is about" Isshin said casually.

"You seemed pretty confident just a few minutes ago" Ryuken said in an annoyed tone.

Ryuken then looked at Kisuke who just smirked and said,

"We are here to have a talk. Let's go inside"

Ryuken looked at Isshin questioningly while Isshin just shrugged.

All three of them got out of the car and walked into the shoten.

They passed the familiar candy aisle before walking into the room and sitting around the familiar table.

Nobody spoke a word until Tessai came in, served them tea and sat in the corner of the room.

After taking a sip of the warm liquid Kisuke started the conversation.

"So i heard you two met someone today"

Ryuken's and Isshin's shoulders rised because of the question but they never said anything.

"I will take that as a yes"

Still no response.

"Now just consider i know what's going on and tell me what you are planning to do next?" Kisuke added as he stared at Isshin intently.

looked at Kisuke with confidence and said,

"I will talk to him when he is ready"

"And what makes you think that?" Kisuke asked.

"Well because-"

"Did he tell you that himself?"

Isshin opened his mouth to retort but didn't find anything to use.

"Thought so" Kisuke said as he sighed and folded his arms across his chest.

"Did the both of you ever consider that maybe him telling you everything will lead to, i don't know, a 9 year long war?" Kisuke asked sarcastically.

"We did think that but we were worried about him Kisuke" Isshin said with a concerning look.

Kisuke looked at Isshin as if asking him to continue.

"He looked so . . . so tired. He had lost everyone he had tried to protect and it pained him. You could see it in his eyes. And yes those eyes, god! They carried wisdom beyond the years a normal teenager should carry. It was as if the whole world's fate was on his shoulders. And in this case, we can't even give him reassurance by saying that 'No, the world's problems belong with them and them only', Cause the fate of the world really does depend on him" Isshin concluded.

"And i wanted to help him so bad Kisuke. I wanted to see him smile again. His age logically now is 27 but he hasn't grown up because of being a shinigami. He is going to stay a teenager for the next 400 to 500 years Kisuke. And looking at the Ichigo who is playing with Uryu now and then looking at this battle ridden Ichigo, i just couldn't help but forget the world and look after him" Isshin added.

Kisuke had listened intently. And Isshin's description of Ichigo sounded alot different than what he had personally observed.

And that confused him.

"You know, your description sounds so different than what i observed" Kisuke said with a hand under his chin.

Isshin didn't speak for a few moments before he realised what Kisuke had said.

"Than what YOU observed? When did you meet him?!" Isshin asked hopefully.

Kisuke looked up and laid a hand down on the table, as if declaring something.

"If the both of you got to meet him again and he gave you a brief description of the past, obviously he won't tell everything, then will you listen to him knowing that he is going to wipe your memories after?"

"We are going to meet him?" Ryuken asked in shock.

"Only if you accept this offe-"

"Okay!" Isshin said with a huff as he crossed his arms.

Kisuke and Ryuken comically looked at Isshin who just got up and opened the shoji door behind him.

"Wait but he is resting so let him be-"

"He is wide awake and staring at me like an idiot" Isshin interrupted Kisuke.

Ichigo was sitting in his futon wearing a normal blue T-shirt and sweatpants and staring at Isshin with wide eyes.

Kisuke got up, stood beside Isshin and gave Ichigo the same disappointed look Isshin was giving him.

"I thought Tessai told you to sleep" Kisuke said.

"Well I was sleeping earlier-" Ichigo started as he looked away.

"No you weren't. You look away when you lie. You were listening to our conversation weren't you?" Isshin said as he walked into the room and yanked the blanket off Ichigo.

Ichigo didn't mind that but it didn't stop him from looking away in annoyance.

Knowing Ichigo wasn't going to speak Isshin said,

"We need to talk"

"Why?"

Isshin wanted to yell at Ichigo's face and say "ISN'T IT OBVIOUS!" but he didn't.

"I am not asking"

Ichigo sighed and then looked at Kisuke who just shrugged and said,

"It's better than always being scared and thinking they might find out"

"Fine, ask away. I knew this wasn't going to be over just with a memory replacement" Ichigo said as he got up and walked past Isshin and Kisuke and sat down near the table.

Isshin looked at Kisuke who nodded at him approvingly.

When everyone had settled down Ichigo said,

"Do you want me to give you a explanation or do you want to ask questions?"

"Can't we do both?" Ryuken asked hopefully.

"Now this is why I didn't wan-"

Kisuke interrupted Ichigo's coming arguement and said,

"You want my help don't you?"

Ichigo scoffed bitterly at the remark and said,

"Who said I wanted your help? It's just that someone told me to get at least one person to know about my real identity when I go back"

"And who might that be?"

"You"

Kisuke didn't say anything at that and looked at the other two occupants of the room as if asking what they wanted to do.

"We will be okay with just an explanation"

Ichigo nodded as he folded his arms and began but was interrupted again.

"Don't leave important details out" Isshin said.

"You are not even going to remember this after 30 mins so why do you care?" Ichigo asked harshly.

Isshin flinched and Ryuken took over.

"I think he just means to say that it's important that we understand what you are saying. So please continue"

Not wanting to respond to that Ichigo started.

"My first encounter with a hollow was when mom died, on June 17th. Of course at that time I had not even realised what had happened. It was just, one moment I was running after a girl to stop her from jumping into the river, next moment mom yelled for me and the last thing I remember is crying over mom's dead and fully bloodied body"

Nobody spoke up. What Ichigo said weighed heavily on them. If Ichigo hadn't come today then the same would have happened in this timeline.

"And after a while, that is sometime after mom's death, I realised I could see spirits. Then when I was 15, a soul reaper met me by accident. Then a hollow tried to attack us that night and she tried to save us. But she got injured badly. So she had to pass her sword through me to give me her shinigami powers"

Kisuke took a mental note that the shinigami that gave Ichigo his powers was a 'she'.

"Then some things happened. I got to know more about hollows and also got to kill more hollows. Some of my friends gained powers. Between all this I became friends with Uryu. And of course Kisuke was involved with us from the day I became a shinigami. One day on mom's death anniversary we encountered the hollow that had killed mom again. I had only managed to injure it that time"

Ichigo took a deep breath in and again started,

"After this point everything changed. Soul Society had declared Rukia's execution because of her felony of sharing powers. She was taken back. My powers were also taken away. But then I attained powers of my own. Me and several of my friends with powers decided to save her. Kisuke sent us to soul society. We had to go through a lot of shit but we finally saved her"

Then Ichigo looked up at Kisuke with a serious expression and said,

"But that's when Aizen revealed his **plan**"

Nobody spoke a word, allowing Ichigo to continue.

"He took the Hogyōku from Rukia's soul and ran away. Everyone realised Aizen had been playing a game and he was the one that was running Central 46 and giving out orders. Even Rukia's execution order. So her execution got cancelled and then came the first war"

"All of this wasn't a war? At least for you?" Isshin asked, eyes dull with worry.

"Don't worry so much. You will see for yourself why. So where was i? Yeah the first war. Aizen started making arrancars with the Hogyōku. Dad was the one that killed the first one that came into Karakura. Then later there were stronger ones. Much much more stronger than some captains. And one of my friends also got kidnapped. Aizen did that because he wanted me in Hueco Mundo, trying to save her while he attacked the world of the living. Soon we defeated the arrancars and were able to go back much earlier. But Aizen had already fused with the Hogyōku, at least a little. But even that 'little' was alot. None of the captains could defeat him and he took down Yamamoto by a trick. Nobody died but it still was terrifying. Then I had to attain final getsuga tensho to kill him. I lost my powers because of this"

"I taught you final getsuga tensho? But I shouldn't have done that-"

"See? That's how serious the situation was back then"

Isshin just nodded in response.

"Then one former substitute shinigami helped me gain my full bring. I didn't know he had different aims. He actually wanted me to attain my full bring only to steal it from me. Which he did. Then at that same time Rukia cante back with a sword that gave me back my powers. So I had to defeat that full bringer while my friends and some lieutenants and captains defeated his teammates"

"I don't know what you consider it but I don't consider this full bring thing a war to be precise. Most of my friends told me this could be of war potential but only 2 people died in this and it wasn't even that destructive" Ichigo said with a shrug.

Then everything fell silent. Tessai interrupter them with a tea pot and refilled 3 cups and looked at Ichigo's full cup before shaking his head and walking out again.

"Ichigo . . . The third war" Ryuken reminded even though he knew he didn't need to.

"Well there were some more incidents like the Blanks, the shenenju, the bounts and about some people who escaped hell and-"

"We don't wanna know that Ichigo" Isshin said calmly.

"It's not that we don't wanna know that. They all sound like interesting topics. But right now we would like to know about the 3rd war" Kisuke said as he covered his face with a fan, only leaving his eyes out.

Ichigo looked hesitant but started anyways.

"The third war started when I was 18. One of my friends from Hueco Mundo came to the world of the living, asking me to protect Hueco Mundo. After sealing Aizen there was no one to rule Hueco Mundo so I knew if something happened that led her to come to me, I needed to go there. I went over and found Quincy killing hollows, arrancars and stealing some for personal combat forces. I had encountered one the day before but I wasn't sure if he really was a quincy. But when I fought another at Hueco Mundo, I was sure. Then I realised it was their plan to make me busy in Hueco Mundo so they can attack Soul Society. I tried to go back but I was trapped in the garganta. Then they attacked and the Quincy only retreated when I got there"

"Ichigo you do know that your mother is a Quincy and how we both met-"

"Yeah I know"

"There were thousands of deaths in this first strike. So me and 2-3 others were taken in by the royal guard to train. I then got to know that both the Shiro and Zangetsu are my blades. So I got a dual blade. Then after some time the Quincy attacked again. Somewhere in between dad told me of mom's past. Then when I reached down we started fighting like crazy. But that's when Yhwach went for the soul palace. He was able to do that because-"

"-If someone with Ōken travels down then the path to soul palace stays open for 6000 seconds" Kisuke finished.

"Yeah. Then all of us had to go back to soul palace to save the spirit king but Yhwach used me to kill the king. Then Ukitake stepped up as the spirit king but it still didn't work out for long. Then of course Yhwach went back to soul society to find Aizen. I was defeated in soul palace so it took a bit of a time to retrieve my Zanpaktōs. Then when I came down I saw Aizen fighting Yhwach for soul society so I started fighting too. But in the end, this was also a part of their plan. Aizen betrayed everyone again and using the Hogyōku, Aizen and Yhwach fused. That was when everything took a turning point. Almost everyone died. Only me and Kisuke were remaining after 9 years. I had managed to kill Aiwach after so long. Then the guy told me he had a bit of a human heart left somewhere and so he wanted me to have a way to save everyone. All of them. So I came back in time. But he said this timeline will be a bit different. So far I haven't noticed anything" Ichigo ended.

"Your description of the 3rd war isn't long. But I guess you didn't go in detail of everyday or else it would take too long right?" Ryuken asked.

"Yeah"

There was nothing but silence for the next 5 minutes so Kisuke decided to cut the chase and said,

"Okay! So it's obvious that the Hogyōku needs to be destroyed. We can do that with ease, at least after a decade more of testing that is~"

Ichigo's eyes widened and he held Kisuke's arm and said,

"Don't destroy it!"

Kisuke was a bit taken back at the sudden action but asked,

"Why not?"

"I need the Hogyōku to go back and save Kisuke"

"Call the other Kisuke with some other name, it sounds weird to me. And how are you planning to do that?" Kisuke asked suspiciously.

"Well I have this tool with which I came here. Both me and Kisuke were going to come but I ended up alone. So I need the Hogyōku to go back and save him. The Hogyōku powers the tool"

Kisuke asked Ichigo to give him the tool and Ichigo reluctantly gave him after a long process of letting Ichigo out of his gigai so he could get access to his pouch and then entering the gigai again.

Kisuke examined the hilt and it didn't even take him another second to guess that this thing won't work again.

And even if it did there was another problem.

The reality from which Ichigo came from won't exist if he had time travelled out of it.

Realities are like rooms without exits. If something is inserted in the room when it was being made it's no problem. But if something tries to go outside, it has to break and destroy the room from inside.

So Ichigo escaping his timeline just did that to his previous reality.

While Ichigo was talking to Ryuken about something, Isshin noticed the expression Kisuke had on his face.

Kisuke looked up at Isshin who was looking at him hopefully and shook his head as a disapproval.

'No . . . the last person he knew was alive is also dead?' Isshin thought as he looked at Ichigo with pity.

Isshin shook his head at Kisuke who understood the gesture.

"So we can do it Kisuke, right?" Ichigo asked with a smile.

'Kisuke is the only person he smiles at' Ryuken thought grimly.

"Of course we can do it Kurosaki kun~" Kisuke said with a grin as he ignored his first name being mentioned by Ichigo.

'Guess I will just have to get habitual to it' Kisuke thought.

"Okay then, does anybody have anymore questions for Ichi chan?" Kisuke asked as he closed his fan and got up.

"How does he call me that in this timeline too" Ichigo whispered to himself with a scowl.

Isshin and Ryuken looked at each other as if asking whether they wanted to know more.

"That's it" Ryuken said.

"Ichigo, give me that memory replacement thing that Senjumaru gave you" Kisuke said as he let forward his arm.

Ichigo just stared at the arm.

"What are you waiting for?" Kisuke asked.

"I am waiting for you to push my soul out of my body so that I can get it" Ichigo said.

And just then Kisuke did what he was told without warning.

Ichigo's gigai fell on the ground while it's head hit the table.

'Okay that's going to hurt afterwards' Ichigo thought as he shook his head and handed Kisuke the memory replacement lighter from his pouch and then entered his gigai again.

"Ouch" Ichigo said as he rubbed his bruised forehead.

"So when are we going to see you again Ichigo?" Isshin asked.

"Don't you wanna ask something about the future again?" Ichigo asked.

"I have asked enough and the only reason I was even asking in the first place is because I was worried about you" Isshin said while Ryuken nodded in agreement.

"Well then that's good. And I cannot tell perfectly but I will meet you again in a decade or something" Ichigo said.

"Well now if the goodbyes are over~" Kisuke said as he pushed the memory replacement button without warning.

Kisuke, Tessai and Ichigo flashstepped out of the house , with Ichigo on Tessai's shoulders, while the medicine did it's work.

"Wait Jinta and Ururu-"

"Nah don't worry. They are sleeping in the room above. It won't affect them"

As Kisuke said that, Tessai let Ichigo down and slowly walked inside as the smoke started to clear.

"What is he going to do?" Ichigo asked.

"He is going to take Isshin and Ryuken and leave them at their respective houses and make it seem like Uryu just had a stayover at Isshin's house. Masaki will also be left back at her own house"

"So everyone's going to go back to their own house, wake up in their beds and think they just overslept while the kids had a night stay?"

"Yes"

"And you have wiped the memories of the kids too?"

"Yes

"Do you have a plan of what you are going to do with me?"

Kisuke slowly turned to look at Ichigo with a smirk and Ichigo had shivers run down his spine.

"I don't like that look Kisuke" Ichigo said as he looked at Kisuke wryly.

"What~ It isn't everyday that an ally from future comes to visit. I need to get creative" Kisuke said as he flapped his fan and walked inside, Ichigo following him.

* * *

"What kind of plan is that Kisuke?" Ichigo asked, his eyebrows twitching every now and then.

He hadn't noticed it first but the past was making it easy for him to lose his composure.

"It works perfectly Kurosaki san. It not only keeps you out of danger while being in soul society but it also makes you less suspicious"

"B-But what about my powers? And also my strength? What if something goes wrong-"

"Did I say that you are going to lose your powers and strength?"

Ichigo looked up at Kisuke and after noticing that he indeed was serious he just looked back down.

"There is another reason because of which you don't want to follow my plan, isn't there?"

"How did you know?" Ichigo said as he rubbed his face with his hands to level down the stress.

"It was obvious. And I can actually even guess the reason. But being me, I know that I must have warned you about this before time traveling" Kisuke said as he walked towards the door of another room.

"Yeah, you did warn me about it" Ichigo said, defeated.

"But you must have been stubborn and time travelled anyways" Kisuke said as he took out a piece of floor mat to reveal a metal door.

"Right about that too"

Kisuke then looked at Ichigo and without flinching said

"Then you cannot complain"

After saying that, Kisuke jumped down the hole on the floor and Ichigo followed without arguments.

* * *

"So what are you planning to do now? I mean I know your plan, but how are you going to apply it?"

"Well I am going to invent the medicine, drink, whatever you call it first, which would be a easy task considering I know how to make it" Kisuke said as he walked into his lab that looked like an old Japanese house from outside.

"How long will it take exactly?"

"About a day"

Ichigo had a thoughtful expression for a moment before he gave a slight bow of his head and started walking towards a tall rock.

"What are you going to do?"

"I am going to talk to my Zanpaktōs"

Judging from his tone Kisuke guess Ichigo hadn't talked to his Zanpaktō for a long time.

"Well good luck with that" Kisuke said as he walked into the lab.

Ichigo winced as he remembered old Kisuke saying the same thing to him.

'But at least Kisuke is alive in the past. The second I get everything done in this timeline, I will go back and save him'

Ichigo jumped up and sat on the tallest rock he could find in this basement. He took out his swords and thrusted their tips into the rock, in front of him.

He closed his eyes and then started meditating. It didn't take him more than a few seconds to get inside his inner world.

Ichigo opened his eyes and saw the familiar inverted buildings and found himself standing on one too.

He then looked up the sky, clearly noticing the 'storm' that had replaced the light drizzle of rain that used to fall at the start of the war.

"Where are you guys?" Ichigo asked out loud.

Recieving no response, Ichigo sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

He knew this was going to happen.

Then without a second's gap, he felt an attack coming his way.

But he smiled and didn't move.

Two swords were thrusted into his chest, the small one from front and the big one from behind.

**_"Why didn't you dodge?"_** The man in front of him whispered into his ear.

"I knew it won't hurt" Ichigo said as he rested his hand on Zangetsu's hand and pushed the sword further into his chest, not feeling a pang of pain.

Without another word, both the Zanpaktō spirits drew back their swords and stood together in front of Ichigo.

Of all the things Ichigo felt guilty about, the look of betrayal in both of the spirits eyes hurt Ichigo more than anything.

"I am so sorry" Ichigo finally said as he looked down, feeling like a child as he apologized

He heard Zangetsu sigh and he heard a face palm.

He looked up to find Shiro an inch away from his face.

He fell down and rubbed his back as he looked at the Zanpaktō spirit disapprovingly.

**"Oh you don't get to give me that look king. And what the hell are you apologizing for huh!? That's what I wanna know"** Shiro said as he crossed his arms and tapped his feet impatiently.

"Well I apologized because I haven't been talking to you guys-"

**_"Well you have already paid back for that"_**

"How?"

**"I don't know, I guess we just stabbed you a few seconds ago?" **Shiro said sarcastically as he held out an hand for Ichigo to hold while standing up.

Ichigo took the offered hand and gave the Zanpaktō spirit a funny look

**"What now?"** Shiro asked as he glared at Ichigo.

"Well it's just that, you have changed alot since I first got to know you"

Shiro looked flustered at first but then scratched his head as he looked away and said,

**"You have changed too"**

"Really? How?"Ichigo asked, amused.

**_"Well you have surely gotten alot stronger. When you fight, you fight maturely. And you seem to be very less of that brash teenager now" _**Zangetsu said.

"Well it's because I am older" Ichigo said with a light shrug.

**_"You can deny it all you want but you are still a teenager. The day you became a shinigami, your aging system changed. You may not want to but you will stay a teenager for another 400 to 500 years" _**Zangetsu said.

"I am 27" Ichigo said with a slight pout.

**"Which means you have another 473 years to go" **Shiro said with a chuckle.

"Let's get back to how I have changed mentally, I don't wanna hear how I have centuries to turn into a adult. It sounds tiring"

**"Mentally? Okay then let's talk about this rain"** Shiro said dryly.

A expression came over Zangetsu's face, clearly saying that he didn't want Shiro to say that.

Ichigo flinched but didn't say anything. Even he didn't want to touch the topic, just like Zangetsu. He knew that saving the people who died will stop the rain but it must have been so bad for Zangetsu and Shiro, it had been raining for 6 years with many more to go.

**"How are ya planning to fix this king?"**

"I-I don't know"

**"Well figure it out cause I don't know how to handle this shit anymore"**

"I am sorr-"

**_"Ichigo"_**

Ichigo looked up at Zangetsu and Ichigo knew he was going to say something he would absolutely not want to do.

**_"_****_You_****_ need to talk to someone"_**

Shiro just rolled his eyes and shunpoed away muttering, **"As if he is going to do that"**

Ichigo looked at the spot where Shiro once stood, the rain filling up the wet place where there were a pair of sandals.

"I did talk to Kisuke"

**_"Not for the mission, not for the people, not for the plan but yourself"_** Zangetsu said as he rested a hand on Ichigo's shoulder, providing reassurance.

"I have you guys" Ichigo reasoned again.

**_"You will always have us Ichigo. But we are merely parts of your soul. And you need more than that Ichigo"_**

Ichigo said nothing for a few seconds.

"I can't Zangetsu. I can't risk anything. And it's not like I am hurt or something. It's just the rain, I will be fine. I always have been fine, that's why I protect" Ichigo said as he lightly pushed Zangetsu's arm away.

Zangetsu looked at Ichigo with a calculative glare before nodding in agreement.

Ichigo ran a hand through his wet hair before he looked at Shiro's spot again.

"Will he be okay?" Ichigo asked.

**_"He will be fine, the rain is making him more of an idiot than usual. But what I want to know is, will we be able to see the spark again? The one you had before the war?" _**Zangetsu asked with a smile as he started to fade away.

"It never left Zangetsu ossan" Ichigo said.

But he didn't return the smile.

* * *

Ichigo opened his eyes and stayed at the same place contemplating the situation before he got up and put both Zanpaktō back in their sheaths.

He then looked around for the roof of the familiar lab in midst of the rocky terrain but didn't find one.

'Probably an illusion, it has to be right there' Ichigo thought as he shunpoed towards his left and in a few seconds reached where he thought the lab was.

He looked at the empty air in front of him before he took a step forward.

Everything that was once invisible became crystal clear.

"Ding! Ding! Ding! Congratulations on guessing it was an illusion!" Kisuke yelled into Ichigo's ears.

Ichigo just pushed Kisuke's head back and asked,

"What were you doing for the past hour? Or hours? I don't know how much time passes in my inner world"

"You were gone for good for 12 hours" Kisuke said as he took Ichigo inside the lab.

There was a gust of cool air and then the smell of chemicals hit him hard.

"Sorry for the bad smell Kurosaki san but many chemicals were needed for making this" Kisuke said as he walked towards a glass cabinet.

This glass cabinet was the only thing that wasn't silver coloured in the whole room but the chemical Kisuke was pointing at was silver too.

"I have to drink that?" Ichigo asked as he took out the test tube and looked at it closely.

"Oh don't be picky. This one would last until you want it to. And this will make your seal stronger too"

"I had another doubt"

Kisuke raised his eyebrow and Ichigo said,

"My seal is of 8th squad. Even if I am not a member of the squad, whenever a seal is released, information about the seal's owner and his or her squad is recorded in the 12th squad database. But my database doesn't even exist in this time. But information about me is till engraved into the seal's spells. So what would happen if I release it?"

"I didn't think you would be able to figure even that much out but yes, the information is engraved in the seal itself, but the squad doesn't have your database in 12th squad. So that's what something even I wasn't able to figure out" Kisuke said as he held his hat to shadow his face.

"Aren't you a genius or something?"

"Well even a genius like myself hasn't studied time travel Kurosaki san" Kisuke said with a smirk.

"Then what should I do with it?"

"Well the best possible option we have right now is you don't release it as long as it isn't a life or death kind of situation"

"You said the seal would be stronger? So I guess the power I will end up with will be 10 percent of my original and that is only enough to hold a arrancar back, not even defeat it. Will this be enough?" Ichigo said worriedly.

"Well you won't be alone Ichigo, there will be people to save you. And as I said, you can release it if it's a life or death situation"

Ichigo just nodded and then asked,

"And what about the seal's visibility? It's a black 3 inch 8th squad tattoo on the right of my neck, ANYONE could notice it"

"Well this drink will keep the seal hidden for the first month, then later you will have to use your makeup skills~" Kisuke said as he flapped his fan.

Ichigo just shook his head but it looked like he had something else to ask.

"What is it?"

"Well Kisuke, can I really go back? To everything? Would I be able to see them again and act naturally?"

Kisuke paused, he knew this question was coming but it felt different in reality.

"Are you complaining Kurosaki san? Then I should take this drink from you as you don't wish to adjust to your new life" Kisuke said as he went to grab the chemical but Ichigo snatched it back and took a defensive stance.

"No I will do just fine" Ichigo said in a low whisper as he took out the rubber cork and without a second thought chugged down the chemical.

The silver liquid left a burning sensation in his throat, similar to alcohol. But it was gone as soon as it came and he started to feel dizzy.

"See you in few years Kurosaki san" Kisuke said as Ichigo passed out in front of him, the test tube still in his hands.

"That sentence was a bit harsh boss" Tessai said as he picked Ichigo up and rested him on his shoulders.

"Well I don't know what to say to him Tessai. His life is at such a bad point right now, the only thing that will make him feel that it isn't that bad is telling him that he is being a brat by complaining about his life. If I told him that his life really is at a bad point then he would get more depressed"

Tessai silently watched as Kisuke crushed the test tube on the ground with his crane.

"I hate the soul society that did that to him, a normal young teenager" Kisuke said.

Tessai without another word walked towards the Senkaimon setup and started preparing for Ichigo's see off.

While Kisuke watched the ground melt because of the acidity of a single drop of the liquid that was left in the now crushed test tube.


	5. Chapter 5

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**CAN YOU GUYS BELIEVE IT?! BLEACH IS COMING BACK Y'ALL!**

* * *

Shunsui Kyoraku had to agree something was wrong when he woke up today.

Or during the time he ran his daily errands.

Or during the time he did what he did everyday?

He tried to shake it off, the feeling of foreboding that is, but it wouldn't go away.

His mind told him it had been too long since something different happened in soul society, or at least in his own life and something is going to happen very soon.

All his doubts were proved to be true when he heard a small blast nearby.

Guessing it was just another one of his squad members messing around, he sent his 3rd seat, Kobayashi Takeru to examine the situation as Nanao was out of sight.

Takeru had been the best squad member after Nanao. He was even fit for a lieutenant's position. But he was a kid, which apparently was a problem in soul society.

As he kept staring at the sky as the bright sunlight was blocked by a tree nearby. While he laid on the red tiled roof for 20 minutes, he wondered something.

'What's taking Kobayashi so long? And where is Nanao chan?' He thought.

After a few more minutes he sighed as he lazily got up and stretched his hands.

Then he looked at the place from where still a bit of smoke was coming off and he frowned. Today was supposed to be his lazy day.

Then he flashstepped towards the direction where he thought he saw the remaining smoke of the small blast coming off.

As he neared the area he heard some commotion which sounded similar to yelling and moving of things around.

Now a bit anxious, he increased his speed and reached the dusty spot within few seconds.

And what he saw was not what he expected.

Nanao's squad dorm room was blown to bits while a crater smaller than the room had formed in between the rubble.

Many squad members that had been around the area during the blast were hurt and squad 4 members were tending and carrying some patients to the 4 th squad.

He then stopped near one of the 4th squad members.

"Have you seen squad 8th's third seat? Takeru Kobayashi?" Shunsui asked hurriedly.

The 4th squad member grunted as he tended to the patient in hand and without looking said,

"Hey! I am kinda busy here, this guy needs some more gauze, pass me some right now!"

Shunsui smiled a bit at the determination and passed the boy some gauze he found in a box behind him.

"Here take this. Can you at least point towards the direction I can find Kobayashi san?" Shunsui asked as he got up and continued to look around a bit.

The 4th squad guy stopped and slowly looked up as realisation dawned on him.

"Y-You are Cap-Captain Kyoroku Shunsui of squad 8th?! I am so sorry!" Hanataro said as he almost came to tears.

Shunsui smiled awakwardly at the boy and then before he could repeat his question Hanataro said,

"If you reach behind the big rubble, you will find Takeru san guiding 4th and 8th squad members, sir!"

Shunsui smiled again as he waved at the boy before walking towards the said direction.

He carefully stepped over the big wooden twigs that were sticking out. He grimaced when he saw blood on one of the sticks.

'Someone got stabbed badly' He thought.

Finally he found Takeru guiding everyone.

"Carry that woman with blonde hair to the 7th room from the right! Take that man out of the way! 8th squad members, make way for the new 4th squad members! Yes, group 5 move towards the right! N-No not that way, MY right! Someone check on the 2 kids inside the other room! And yes, Yua, check on the Lieutenant again!"

Shunsui's shoulders tensed at the mention of his lieutenant being injured but he had more important matters at hand.

When Takeru finished his 4th set of orders he sighed and ran a hand through his sweaty black hair. He then rolled his eyes as the hair that he had carefully set this morning came in front of his eyes, the wet strands ruining his glasses.

He grunted as he removed his glasses and tried to clean them with his Shihakusho sleeves.

Suddenly a hand on his shoulder made him jump up with a shriek and it took him a few seconds to notice it was Shunsui and he sighed.

He noticed the 4th squad members giving him a weird look while the 8th squad staring as if this happened everyday, which actually did. Even the ones that were injured looked at him weirdly.

"What's wrong with you guys? Get to work! People are literally dying!" Takeru yelled.

Everyone just rolled their eyes but got to work anyways while Shunsui chuckled.

"So what happened?" Shunsui asked.

Suddenly Takeru's expression took a serious turn and he looked at Shunsui as if telling him, this wasn't the correct place to talk about it.

Shunsui nodded with a unaffected smile as he looked around and his eyes spotted a suitable place to talk.

But before he could say anything Takeru said,

"No, not there. I know where to talk. You might wanna see your lieutenant too, right?"

Shunsui didn't respond as it was obvious what his response would be.

Takeru looked back at the working squad members and yelled,

"Everyone stay calm and keep doing what you are doing! I hope to see every injured person cleared out!"

A series of "Yes sir!" were heard and Takeru walked towards a street with Shunsui right behind him.

"You know you work well for a third seat" Shunsui praised.

Takeru flustered for a bit before he pushed his glasses up and said,

"Well I had applied for the 1st seat position or even a lieutenant but I was young. The qualified age is 300"

"Well not if you are talented enough" Shunsui said with a smirk as he patted Takeru's back but the teen just blushed at the praise and said,

"Well i really AM young. I am just 227"

'Ah still a teenager' Shunsui thought with a hand under his chin.

"Well this problem is nothing that a few more years of aging cannot solve. You will still be a teenager when you are 300 but at least you can become the first seat" Shunsui said as he followed Takeru into one of the houses.

Takeru stopped in front of the door and said,

"All the other houses were filled so this was the best one I could find for the lieutenant-"

"-Don't worry. Even though Nanao chan is indeed the lieutenant, she is a shinigami and she will have the same treatment as all the others" Shunsui finished for Takeru who still looked a bit nervous.

Takeru slid the door open slowly and both of them walked into the dark room.

Nanao was sleeping soundly in one of the futons in the completely empty room besides the healer that was present there.

A continuous green glow was being supplied on Nanao's arms by the healer.

"What happened?" Shunsui asked.

At hearing Shunsui's voice the healer girl was about to get up but Shunsui just raised his hand and assured her to continue her work.

"Both of her arms are totally broken. It would take at least 2 weeks for her to heal completely. If she was a normal soul, her arms would have turned to dust" The healer, Yua Tanaka, 3rd seat of 4th squad said grimly as she wiped some sweat that had formed on her forehead.

Shunsui raised an eyebrow at that and asked,

"But a small blast did all that damage? Not only to Nanao but to many other members too?"

"No. The blast even though was small, it had a lot of destruction power"

Shunsui looked back at Nanao and then asked again,

"Was she inside the house?"

"No, she was on the roof"

Shunsui raised an eyebrow, clearly wondering why Nanao would stand on the roof of her own house.

It was a common occuring to stand on roofs if you are running around but according to Takeru she just stood there?

Shunsui's expression gave away the excess amount of questions that were lingering in his mind.

"3rd seat Takeru Kobayashi . . . what about him?" The healer asked as she wrapped the cast around Nanao, avoiding eye contact.

Takeru looked at the woman who now looked back at him, both exchanging glances as if they could understand what each other was thinking.

"I am aware, 3rd seat Yua Tanaka" Takeru finally declared as he held out his hand and the woman took it gratefully as she got up.

"I will get going then, Captain Kyoraku and Takeru"

'On first name basis with my 3rd seat are we? When did i stop to keep tab on my squad members?' Shunsui thought with a smirk.

The blue eyed woman after giving a respectful bow removed her hair tie and walked out, letting down her black hair after all the tiring work she had done.

When she was out of sight Shunsui whistled.

"What?" Takeru asked, a bit of bitterness in his voice.

"Oh nothing. Just admiring that woman's beauty" Shunsui said as he eyed Takeru with a smirk who gave away a slight scowl before hiding it again.

'Knew it. So a 4th squad member with an 8th squad brat? New in soul society' Shunsui thought.

"So who was she talking about?" Shunsui asked.

Takeru looked at Shunsui for a moment before he said,

"The blast didn't occur on it's own captain"

"Then-"

"Nanao chan tried to save someone"

'Oh that's something different from what i had in mind'

"From what?"

"From crashing down into her house and dying?" Takeru said with lingering sarcasm.

"And that someone came from?"

"No one knows"

Takeru said and then glanced at the shoji door that was beside Nanao's futon.

Shunsui looked at Nanao's condition again before he started walking towards the door, his hand always near his sword just in case.

And it didn't go unnoticed by Takeru.

"Captain, it's a kid" Takeru added.

Shunsui paused in his tracks and looked back at Takeru and said,

"Oh . . . that changes things a bit. But even a young man is capable of too many things, especially if it's a soul"

But nonetheless Shunsui dropped the hand that had been gripping his precious Zanpaktō and opened the door.

But Shunsui didn't take another step into the dark room and just kept staring.

"I will not be surprised if he is still sleeping. He still got hurt even though Nanao tried her best to save him"

But Shunsui didn't make a move that told Takeru he had acknowledged him.

Takeru walked towards the man and stood beside him, gaping as well.

The boy was well and awake and was staring at what seemed like two grown men.

Takeru's hand went towards his sword silently and he noticed Shunsui had done the same.

_**"Ichigo . . . "** _The man with black hair said.

The boy looked at the man with a clueless look, his expression remaining calm yet the confusion could be seen.

**"It's no use old man, remember what the blondie had told him? He won't remember. And besides, we have some company" **The totally albino man with a white shihakusho said as he looked at Shunsui and Takeru.

It was obvious that the albino was a hollow, his voice and eye colour were a dead give away.

But they didn't raise their Zanpaktō because they couldn't find a reason to attack a hollow without a mask or a hole in it's chest.

The man with black hair looked at them as well and he sighed, as if he was tired of what was happening.

**_"Yes, let's go" _**The man with black hair said then he looked back at the kid.

"Wait you can't just-" Shunsui's hand stopped Takeru from continuing further.

Takeru looked at Shunsui questioningly, Shunsui just looked at the kid.

"If a fight broke out here, we won't be able to keep the kid safe. And we don't know what kind of strength these men possess. And I don't think they want a fight to break out as well. Am I wrong?" Shunsui said with a innocent smile as he looked at both the unknown men in front of him.

Yet Shunsui's eyes screamed 'threat', not for him but towards the two men.

Without even glancing back at Shunsui, the man with black hair smiled a bit as the boy continued to look at them in confusion, yet the boy looked prepared for anything.

**_"Remember your name, it's Ichigo Kurosaki. It's the only thing you will possess for a while"_**The man with black hair said as he disappeared along with his albino counter part.

The second both of them disappeared, two Zanpaktō fell on the floor, on the spot the beings were standing.

"They were Zanpaktō spirits? I hadn't noticed any Zanpaktō lying around in this room before" Takeru said as he scratched his head.

But Shunsui had more important matters in hand. For example, the boy.

'No, not boy. He has a name-'

"It's Ichigo"

Shunsui looked up wondering who said that until his eyes fell on the boy who was staring right back at him.

"What?"

"You were wondering what my name was right? It's Ichigo, Ichigo Kurosaki"

"And what did the guy mean when he said your name will be the only thing you will possess for a while?" Takeru asked in a tone that would lighten up the atmosphere a bit.

The said boy Kurosaki thought for a few seconds before he shrugged and said,

"I don't know"

"Well we can think about that later. So where did you come from?" Shunsui asked as he walked over to Ichigo with a smile.

The boy's eyes widened as he left his futon and scrambled away from Shunsui. He only stopped when his back hit another wall.

"Hey it's oka-"

"No, please stay away" Kurosaki said with a frightened look yet talked as politely as he could.

Shunsui looked into the boy's eyes and noticed the fear that was pouring out.

"Okay, I won't come any closer. I will just sit here and ask you some questions okay?"

Before sitting Shunsui waited for a response from the boy. Ichigo thought for a moment before just nodding.

Shunsui gestured Takeru to come into the room as well and sit beside him.

"You can relax kid" Takeru said but it had no effect.

Shunsui took in the boy's appearance. He wore a normal medical clothing, probably given to him while they healed him. His loosened medical uniform also revealed gauze around his stomach and some was wrapped around his head too.

It was dark so he couldn't see much but he could make out the boy was young. He looked around 10 in human age but nobody can guess someone's age in soul society so he thought the kid should be around 30 or more.

"So we know your name is Ichigo Kurosaki. But do you know your name because the man told you so, or did you already know what it was?" Shunsui asked.

"No, I already knew my name"

"Okay so that's a good thing, this means there is no memory loss" Takeru whispered to himself as he breathed out a low sigh of relief.

The kid seemed to smile a bit at that and Shunsui instantly liked that kid.

Just the fact that 'he was okay' made the kid's day? So he wasn't one of those needy brats. And who wouldn't like that bright smile.

For some reason, after seeing that smile Shunsui didn't feel lazy anymore.

Then Shunsui nudged Takeru slightly who decided to ask the next question.

"Where did you come from?"

"Where i came from?" The Kurosaki kid asked back.

Recieving two nods he said,

"I came from- Yes, I traveled from- Wait, I . . . I know where I came from I just can't-"

"It's okay, calm down. Maybe you don't remember that. So you might have temporary amnesia. Let's go with some basic knowledge questions, since you remembered your name, you might remember other basic things. Okay?"

Shunsui waited for a response. The boy took a minute to accept the fact that he really didn't remember anything and then nodded.

"Do you remember when you died?"

It was a basic question, every soul in soul society remembered when he or she died.

But the kid looked up with a horrifying expression set on his face.

'Oh fuck, don't tell me-' Takeru thought.

"When I died? What do you mean when I died?! A-Am I dead right now?! Then are you dead too?! Wait then whe-"

"Calm down!" Takeru yelled.

The kid tensed up at the sudden rise in voice and suddenly tears began to form at the ends of his eyes.

"What are you doing Kobayashi?!" Shunsui whispered strictly.

"What?! I didn't know what to do-"

"He doesn't even know that he died! So that means he REALLY is a small kid and he died just today! He looks around 10! Did you just yell at a 10 year old kid for being scared that he died?!" Shunsui whispered back hysterically.

Kobayashi didn't respond but he understood what Shunsui had told him. Then he looked at the weeping kid and frowned.

"Listen kid, I know it's hard but it's okay. You are in heaven, this is the nicest place you can be! You can be scared but it won't last long" Takeru said with a smile as he carefully got closer to the kid and patted his back.

Ichigo looked up and said,

"Really? Is this heaven?"

"Yes of course! Hell is way worse than this kid. You were probably a good boy before you died"

Ichigo sniffed as he looked at his own hands then back at the smiling Takeru.

"What is your name sir?" Ichigo asked Takeru.

"Me? I am 3rd seat of squad 8, Takeru Kobayashi"

"Huh?"

"What?" Takeru asked, mildly amused by the look Ichigo was giving him.

"I understood your name but what do you mean by 3rd seat of Squad 8?"

Shunsui smiled and said,

"You see kid, heaven is protected by 13 squads. They are like divisions of military that are responsible for the safety of soul society"

"I see. So heaven is called soul society?"

"Yes. And I am the 3rd most efficient member in squad 8. So I am called the 3rd seat of squad 8" Takeru explained.

Ichigo mouth hung open as he finally understood, then he looked at Shunsui and asked,

"Then who are you?"

"Me? I am the captain of squad 8, Kyoraku Shunsui"

Ichigo's eyes seemed to brighten up and he asked,

"So you are stronger than him?"

"He is way stronger than me kid. That woman who saved you is the vice captain" Takeru said as Shunsui opened the remainder of the half open Shoji door and Nanao came into view.

"What's her name?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"Her name is Nanao Ise, she is the vice captain of squad 8" Shunsui said.

Ichigo's face seemed to twist as he thought deeply,

"So if everyone around me right now is from squad 8 then that means I am in the area where squad 8 is based?"

"You have a sharp mind kid" Shunsui said in slight suprise.

Ichigo didn't seem to hear what Shunsui had said and kept thinking for another minute.

"Can I go outside? I wanna know what squad 8 looks like and besides, It's really dark in here" Ichigo finally said with hopeful eyes.

Shunsui and Takeru tensed up.

A stranger wanting to know what a squad looked like? And the stranger wasn't even a normal stranger.

Takeru glanced at Shunsui who after a few seconds of thought process, nodded.

* * *

Being outside was a shocker, Shunsui couldn't deny that fact.

When they stepped outside the house, that was the first time both Takeru and Shunsui noticed the kid's bright orange hair.

Noticing Takeru's shock as well, Shunsui whispered,

"You didn't know about this? I thought you were the one who brought him here"

"No I didn't. Yua did, t-the healer I mean. The healer told me that, before Nanao lost consciousness, she had told Tanaka san what had happened. Then Tanaka san told me"

"You can use her first name in front of me you know? You don't need to call her Tanaka san" Shunsui said with a smirk plastered on his face.

"C-Captain!" Takeru said as he turned 3 shades red.

Shunsui just nodded jokingly then looked down at the kid again, only to notice he was gone.

"Where did he go?!"

Suddenly they heard a crash from a street and then some yelling.

With a worrisome glance at each other, Takeru and Shunsui flashstepped towards the commotion.

* * *

"What the hell is wrong with you kid!" A squad member yelled.

Ichigo backed away slightly, his eyes always facing the ground.

"I am sorry" Ichigo said as he picked up the sword that was on the ground and held it up for the man to take.

"Sorry?! Do you think a sorry is going to fix my sword?!" The man said as he snatched the sword away from Ichigo.

Ichigo's eyes watered and he sobbed silently.

"What's happening here?" Takeru asked as he looked at Ichigo then at the frustrated soul reaper.

"This kid took my sword and then blasted it up for some reason! And now my hilt is basically gone!" The soul reaper yelled as he held out his sword for Takeru to see.

Takeru sighed as he looked at Ichigo sternly before he looked back at the soul reaper who was holding out what looked like the remains of his zanpaktō's hilt.

"Did he give an explanation?"

"Obviously not!"

Takeru did a light facepalm and then looked at Ichigo,

"Kurosaki, why and- Wait, what do you mean by 'blasted' your sword?" Takeru asked the shinigami suddenly.

The soul reaper looked up and said,

"He first told me that he wanted to touch the hilt of my sword. I obviously refused at first, then . . . who could resist puppy dog eyes from a cute kid? I mean, he just wanted to touch, what could have gone wrong? Then when he touched it he fired a kidō at it and the hilt is now all busted up"

Kidō? By a kid who just died?

"Well well well what is causing this commotion?" Shunsui said as he finally decided to step in.

The poor shinigami turned around to face Kyoraku himself, standing at a height alot taller than him.

"C-C-Captain Kyoraku?"

"Oh well my pleasure"

"What ar-are yo-"

"My my, what are you scolding this kid for?" Kyoraku asked sweetly but his shadowed eyes said something else.

"Uhh- You see, he-my sword-"

"Hmm, aren't you the 7th seat of 12th squad?" Kyoraku asked as he held up his hat to see clearly.

"Ah, yes captain! Do you know this kid? Huh! Probably you don't. Who let this brat from Rukongai in here anyway? I mean look at his freaky hair colou-"

"What is a squad 12 member doing in my division without permission?" Kyoraku asked, the sweetness in his voice suddenly gone.

Takeru now held Ichigo on his shoulders and Ichigo who had stopped crying was staring at the scene intently.

"Okay, time to run" The shinigami whispered to himself but obviously didn't run as he had a bit of consciousness left.

"Well captain i-"

"Have you attained your shikai? Well obviously you have cause you are a seated member. Every seated member has attained his or her shikai. Your sword will turn back to normal in half an hour. I think we don't have a problem here, right Ichigo?" Shunsui then turned to Ichigo with a smile.

Ichigo nodded happily at Kyoraku and sent another apologizing look towards the shinigami.

'He knows the kid. I am dead' The soul reaper thought.

"Well listen here 7th seat, it was nice having you here. But please remember one thing~"

"Y-Yes captain?"

"I don't want to see you on 8th division squad grounds again. Ever."

The captain's words were already threatening but his gaze was enough of an answer.

The man in question just gulped and after giving a small bow, ran away.

"Ah why did he have to run? What did I do?" Shunsui asked out loud innocently.

"Yeah captain, as if you totally didn't just threaten him" Takeru said with a smile as he looked up at Ichigo who was sulking.

"You want to tell me how you know Kidō?"

"What's kidō?"

Takeru grunted as he ran a hand through his hair then looked at Shunsui.

"We are so not good with kids. I wish my lovely Nanao chan was awake" Shunsui said with a smirk as his eyes went towards the roof of a house.

Suddenly Nanao flashstepped at the scene, her eyes as stern as ever.

"Since when did you know I was here?" Nanao asked.

"Why did you assume I didn't?" Shunsui asked, the smirk still plastered on his face.

Nanao didn't say anything. She then looked at Ichigo who had seemed to jump down and hide behind Takeru's leg.

Her face softened and she said,

"It's okay, I am not going to hurt you. I am here to take care of you"

Ichigo still looked hesitant but Nanao was okay with it. No kid was going to trust a stranger just like that. That means the kid was taught well when he was alive.

"Let's go back to your headquarters captain. We can do the interrogation there" Nanao said.

"But why not in that room?"

"Even walls have eyes captain. Why do you think a squad 12 member came to squad 8 barracks? He must have had some kind of work here" Nanao said as she narrowed her eyes and looked at a house close by.

Shunsui tried to expand his spiritual sensing range and he found the soul reaper still lingering around close to them. To be precise, the house at which Nanao was looking at and that house was far away from the squad 8 exit too.

Shunsui understood and without thinking twice he picked up Ichigo and rested him on his shoulders.

"Hold tight" Shunsui said.

Ichigo's only response was a tighter grip on Shunsui's pink Hayori.

"Let's go"

And all three of them travelled towards Shunsui's work cabin.

* * *

**While in world of the living.**

"Boss?"

At Tessai's tone Kisuke stopped his lab work and turned around.

"Yes?"

"Did you really have to lie to him?"

Kisuke smiled and looked down.

"I told him that he would be a kid for a month and then grow up in 3 months. But actually he is going to stay a kid for a year and grow up in 3 years. That isn't a big lie"

"But still-"

"Tessai, if I made him a kid just for 1 month and if he started growing up to his normal height in 3 months then it would get a lot suspicious. So I decided to make him a kid for 1 year and then he would grow up with a very nice growth spurt for the next three years. At least that's what everyone at soul society would think"

"Soul society would think that he has a very good growth spurt so he grew up to a height of an 18 year old in 3 years?"

"It's better than him growing up fully in 3 months. That would just look plain stupid. I don't know why he wanted the 1 month deal so bad"

"Then why erase his memory only for a month? You should have done that for a year too"

"The memory loss part is only necessary because I think if he let's out even a tiny bit of information, then we are done for. And as a kid, even with a 18 year old's brain, he still might end up spouting non-sense in tense situations"

"So you need him to get used to the situation for a month?"

"Yes and also I want him to get used to the people around him cause-"

Kisuke didn't need to finish the sentence cause Tessai knew what he meant.

He wanted Ichigo to get used to the people around him again cause they were once dead.

"But is just 1 month of memory loss enough for that?"

Kisuke sighed as he looked back at his work.

"Not even years of memory loss is enough for that Tessai. He will just have to cope with it. Just how he had coped with everything else for the last 18 years"

* * *

**Back in soul society.**

"Okay. So all you remember is you are a 9 year old and your name is Ichigo Kurosaki?" Nanao concluded as she set down the pen and paper in which she had listed out the questions she would ask.

"Yes, sorry" Ichigo said as he scratched his head.

Nanao smiled and said,

"Don't be"

Then she got up from the floor and looked behind to see Shunsui looking out the balcony, at the beautiful sun set. Then she looked at Shunsui's desk at the right side of the room to notice all the paperwork still stacked up. Then she noticed the 3rd seat sleeping on the couch that was at the left side of the room.

She took a deep breath in and noticed the room smelled like sake and her anger seemed to rise a bit more.

'Every corner of this room is filled with pathetic-'

"Nanao"

Nanao looked at Shunsui's back.

'He is serious'

"He is no normal child and I know both of you know that"

She didn't say anything, it was obvious. She then looked at Takeru, who was now awake but didn't seem to understand what Shunsui meant.

"How?" Takeru asked.

Shunsui turned around, his big shadow falling on Ichigo because of the sunset behind him.

Ichigo flinched because of the look in Shunsui's eyes. He tugged at Nanao's sleeves who just gave a reassuring smile to Ichigo but looked back at Shunsui with the same expression.

"He was found with two zanpaktō which knew who he was but he didn't know them. He fired a Kidō 31 : shakkahō without knowing what Kidō is. He doesn't remember anything but remembers his age and name? It's obvious he isn't normal Kobayashi" Shunsui said.

Takeru listened yet he still had another doubt.

"How did you save him lieutenant?" Takeru asked.

Nanao flinched at the memory and she looked at her arms before starting the explanation.

"Well I was ready to get to work but suddenly I heard a noise that sounded like a whistle or like a firework whistle. So I got out of my house to point it's source. Then I spotted something falling and it was coming towards my house. I could have stepped out of the way easily but when it came more closer, I noticed it was a kid. So I got on my roof and caught him. I knew it would break my arms but I couldn't just let the kid die. I saved him completely but he was still wounded- wait!"

Nanao in middle of her explanation looked at kid's loosened white medical uniform and her eyes widened.

"B-But just before I fainted I saw him get stabbed by a wooden splinter! He shouldn't even be able to talk right now!" Nanao said.

Shunsui then remembered the blood soaked wooden splinter he had seen and grimaced.

'That looked like it went deep into his skin' Shunsui thought.

"Well I guess then Yua did good work on him" Takeru said with a shrug.

"But 3rd seat, there at least has to be a scar" Nanao then gestured Takeru to look at his stomach.

Takeru walked over and noticed the bandages had loosened along with the medical uniform.

And indeed there wasn't a single scar on the kid's stomach.

"And another reason that he isn't normal" Nanao added as she pushed her glasses up with her cast.

"But how did he cross the spirit barrier of seireitei? If he really was a normal soul, then he should have landed somewhere in Rukongai" Takeru added.

There was silence for 1 min as Ichigo looked from Takeru to Nanao to Shunsui, wondering what they were talking about.

"Captain, we will have to-"

"Yes Nanao Chan, as much as I hate it, we will have to report this to the captain commander"

"Okay then, I will send a request for a meeting-"

"No Nanao Chan, we are going right now and alone"

Nanao even though wanted to resist, she reluctantly agreed. This was for everyone's best.

"Kobayashi, you are going to help out Nanao until both of her hands heal"

"Yes sir!" Takeru said with a bow.

"For now only me and Ichigo are going to meet the captain commander" Shunsui said and within a second the office was now only filled by two occupants.

"So how do you think it's going to go?" Takeru asked.

"I actually have no idea" Nanao said as she looked at the balcony from where Shunsui had left.

* * *

'It's getting dark' Shunsui thought as he continued jumping over the roofs. They had been flashstepping for 5 mins now. The first squad was the farthest from the 8th squad.

"Umm, Kyoraku san?" Ichigo asked weakly.

Shunsui stopped in his tracks at once and looked at the kid on his back.

Ichigo looked pale, too pale in his opinion.

"What's wrong kid?" Shunsui asked worriedly as he picked Ichigo up and held him in front of him.

"Can we walk?" Ichigo asked hopefully.

Shunsui just smiled in relief.

When they got down and started walking Shunsui said,

"You should have just told me you get motion sick"

Ichigo pouted and looked away, Shunsui just chuckled.

"Don't laugh! I remember that I didn't feel so sick while we were going to the other house the same way" Ichigo said as he crossed his arms.

"You mean when we were going to my office?"

"That was just your office?! How big is your house then Kyoraku san?" Ichigo asked wide eyed.

Shunsui just awakwardly smiled and thought,

'How do I tell this kid that our houses are smaller than our offices?'

"But how come you remember you didn't have motion sickness when you were alive?"

"I don't know. It's one of the things I just know"

Shunsui thought for a moment before replying with a,

"I see"

Rest of the walk was silent. It took them 15 mins more to reach there and it was completely dark now.

"Do you like your hair?" Shunsui asked Ichigo as the guards gave the duo a weird look but not stopping Shunsui from entering.

"My hair? Well it sure is a bit different than normal hair. Even that man today said my hair was freaky. I don't know if I liked my hair when i was alive but now I find it cool" Ichigo said with a smile.

"It's like i have dyed hair and I haven't even dyed it!" Ichigo added as he touched his hair and admired it.

"You should. There aren't many people with orange hair" Shunsui said as he ruffled the said boy's hair.

Shunsui looked up to find himself in front of Yamamoto's cabin doors.

"Wanna knock?" Shunsui asked.

"Who is in there?" Ichigo asked with a finger on his chin.

"A man stronger than me. He is actually the strongest man in the whole Soul Society" Shunsui said with admiration.

"Really?! That's so cool!"

**(I mean look at the irony guys. If only Shunsui knew who Ichigo was)**

"So do you?" Shunsui asked.

Ichigo nodded happily as he knocked as hard as he could with his little hands and said,

"Is anyone in there?!"

No response.

Shunsui was going to knock himself but suddenly the big doors opened with loud creaks before revealing the first squad lieutenant.

"Good evening Sasakibe San" Shunsui said cheerfully.

"Why does this room smell like how old people smell like?" Ichigo asked innocently.

Shunsui's smile wavered.

Sasakibe said nothing then his stern gaze shifted towards the other visitor.

Ichigo just smiled at the man and Sasakibe pinched the bridge of his nose then looked back at Shunsui with a look that said,

'He is in a bad mood'

Honestly even Shunsui knew that. He could feel the captain's spiritual pressure a bit out of control.

"This is urgent Sasakibe San." Shunsui said, his eyes narrowing.

Sasakibe opened the doors completely at once and let both the visitors in.

"Captain, we have squad 8 captain here along with . . . " Sasakibe looked at Shunsui who mouthed 'Ichigo'.

"-along with Ichigo"

Sasakibe gave a slight bow to Shunsui and Ichigo did the same to Sasakibe.

"This child has more manners than you Shunsui" Yamamoto interrupted as he finally stopped looking out the balcony and walked towards the three.

Yamamoto looked at Sasakibe and the man walked out.

"So what brings you here at night Shunsui? And who is this child?"

"Well this is a long story old man"

"Hmm" Yamamoto said as he looked at a chair that was in the far corner of the vast room then he looked at Ichigo.

"Go and sit there child, this might take a while" Yamamoto said.

Ichigo at first was hesitant but after recieving a nod from Shunsui, he walked over and sat on the chair which was far enough that nobody could hear the conversation that was happening between Shunsui and Yamamoto.

"The boy has an interesting hair colour" Yamamoto added.

"That's not the only thing interesting about him" Shunsui said as he pulled at his hat and smirked.

**(I know that Shunsui sounds like a paedophile here, but bear with me)**

* * *

Yamamoto stroked his beard at the explanation. Then he looked at the kid who looked at him innocently.

"This child has done nothing to prove he might be a Ryōka?" Yamamoto asked.

"Well he has infiltrated seireitei without permission but a authorized permission can be attained by a 250 year old person at the max. He is just 10. And also there is no sign of infiltration" Shunsui explained.

"I see. So he hasn't broken any law assigned by the central 46?"

"No he hasn't" Shunsui said.

Yamamoto thought for a moment before looking at his own zanpaktō and remembering another point.

"What did you do with the two zanpaktō?"

"I told Takeru Kobayashi to keep them in my office"

Another stroke of beard and then Yamamoto looked up and said,

"I am assigning this child under your supervision"

Shunsui internally sighed in relief, he didn't know what he would do if this kid was assigned to someone like Kenpachi or Byakuya.

"Do NOT let this child out of sight Shunsui. You are to bring him to meetings as well with hearing blockers. You can ask Mayuri to make hearing blockers for this kid. You are also going to keep him in your house, he is going to be with you every second of the day" Yamamoto said sternly.

Shunsui looked a bit surprised and said,

"He is just a kid old man, he doesn't need that much-"

"Just do as I say!" Yamamoto said as he slammed his cane hardly.

Shunsui didn't say another word and nodded while Ichigo flinched at the sudden noise.

"And I want you to do another thing"

"That is?"

"I want you to keep those zanpaktō away from that kid"

"It's not like he can use them old man" Shunsui said at Yamamoto's anxiousness.

"No, there is another reason I am telling you to do that. Just follow orders and come to me a week later" Yamamoto said as he turned around and walked towards his desk.

Shunsui stared at Yamamoto's back as it descended but shrugged as he turned as well and walked towards Ichigo.

"It's almost midnight kid, Let's go" Shunsui said as he picked Ichigo up.

Just as Shunsui was about to open the door to exit Yamamoto said,

"Shunsui"

Shunsui turned around and looked at him.

"You can come earlier to report if there is a problem" Yamamoto said, his eyes carrying no doubt with his own decision.

'Geez that old man is too anxious with this kid. This kid can't even land a punch' Shunsui thought as he nodded and walked out.

* * *

"Ready to go? We could have walked but it's too late right now" Shunsui said as he adjusted Ichigo on his shoulders.

"Can you make us reach there quicker than before? Or else I would feel sick again" Ichigo said as he buried his head behind Shunsui's shoulders.

Shunsui sighed. He has to go through this for the next whole week or even longer if old man decides that he is fit for this position.

"Well I can go faster and reach there is 4 minutes. That is 3 minutes less than before?"

Ichigo smiled and nodded.

Shunsui picked Ichigo up from his shoulders and held him in front with both of his hands. If he went at this speed with Ichigo on his shoulders then the kid would fall off before he knew it.

"Okay ready? Let's go!" Shunsui said as he bursted into the fastest shunpo he could manage.

He saw Ichigo close his eyes and tremble in fear but he never complained so Shunsui thought he was okay with it.

* * *

"So you thought that he was scared but he didn't complain so you should just go with it?!" Nanao yelled at Shunsui who sat on the floor, his eyes squeezed shut.

Before Nanao could say anything else another cry resounded through the office.

Both Nanao and Shunsui looked at the sofa where Takeru was trying his best to quite Ichigo down.

"Seriously what will I do with a captain like you?!" Nanao said as she walked towards Ichigo and left Shunsui there.

Shunsui fake cried while Nanao talked to Ichigo, trying to make him stop.

After 15 mins of talking, Ichigo was finally calm.

"Captain, he is just a 9 year old kid who has died today, he only remembers his name and age. He is just a KID" Takeru whispered as he walked over and helped Shunsui up.

"And if he has a problem with something, he won't say it to an adult's face because according to him, he is in heaven and he can't complain anymore" Nanao whispered as she walked over to the pair.

Shunsui frowned and gave a small nod of understanding.

"Okay, so are you going to keep him or am I going to keep him?" Nanao asked Takeru.

Shunsui looked up and said,

"No, I am going to keep him"

Nanao looked disturbed but before she could say anything Shunsui said,

"Old man's orders"

Takeru and Nanao looked at each other, doubts still persisting.

"Look, Nanao chan can't take care of him, both of her arms are broken. And I have heard that the normal 8th division barracks are a bit dangerous at night" Shunsui added.

Takeru thought for a moment before saying,

"Yeah he is right. At night many 8th division members go from house to house to decide where they are going to have a drinking party. It's not a problem actually but if a kid is around, he could get hurt if we trash around while partying"

'That happens? So I have some more work to do with the squad' Nanao thought as her eyebrow twitched in anger.

"So it's final. Kurosaki is coming with me" Shunsui said loudly so Ichigo could hear him.

Ichigo smiled, waved his hands around but didn't come over.

"Seriously this kid has the brightest smile I have ever seen" Shunsui said as he chuckled at Ichigo's antics.

"As a kid, If I was this excited about something then I would have ran around like an idiot" Takeru said with a chuckle.

"Oh there is one other thing" Shunsui interrupted seriously so that all of Takeru and Nanao's attention was on him.

"Kobayashi, where did you keep those two zanpaktō?" Shunsui whispered.

"The black scabbard ones that we found with him?" Takeru whispered back.

Shunsui nodded and Takeru said,

"I kept them in the cabinet beside your desk"

"Good, Old man has ordered to keep the kid away from those zanpaktō at all costs"

Takeru gave Shunsui a funny look before asking,

"It's not like he can use them, Right?"

"I had said the same thing but it looks like old man seems to be dead set upon something so let's just follow orders and let the two Zanpaktō be in my office" Shunsui whispered.

Takeru and Nanao nodded and Shunsui turned to Ichigo.

"Looks like you are going to stay with me Ichigo~" Shunsui said and started to walk out the door with Ichigo right behind him.

"Will they be okay?" Nanao asked as she walked over and sat on the sofa.

With a tension being lifted from her shoulders, she was now relaxed. She was actually glad that Shunsui took Ichigo. Even though she might not agree but she knew how hard it would have been if she had taken Ichigo under her care with her arms broken like that.

"I don't know, to be honest I think we kind of went hard on Captain"

Nanao nodded, a slightly guilty look on her face.

A comfortable silence passed over them for a minute.

"So anyways," Nanao began as she looked up at Takeru with a smirk.

Takeru gave her a weird look and Nanao continued,

"What's up with you and Yua?"

Takeru's eyes widened as he blushed and flustered and stopped to think of something to say but when nothing came to his mind he said,

"Nothing's going on! Bye, see you tomorrow lieutenant!"

And with that Takeru jumped out the balcony and Nanao poked her head out the window that was near the sofa. She saw him running towards the squad 4 barracks and sighed.

'If I could face palm right now I would have done that' She thought as she got up and walked out the door and the door closed behind her.

* * *

**I posted this chapter earlier because of the new good news we have about BLEACH! It's finally coming back with BURN THE WITCH movie too! I was just so happy! After 8 years of waiting BLEACH is coming back!**

**zeynel: Actually Ichigo entering the 13 court guard squads directly like Kenpachi is not a bad idea! I never thought of that. But I thought that it would be suspicious if a kid came along suddenly. I mean, if someone dies then it's data is recorded in the 12th squad. So if Ichigo came out of nowhere then it would seem just wrong. So our Mr.Urahara had other plans! And yeah, I think Isshin being wiped out without a single piece of information would be unfair! So I gave him one last talk with Ichigo to clear his conscience! And the Squad 0 will come back in future, I promise!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**Guys**** I think I am going along happy vibes all of a sudden, in the story I mean. If yes then please tell me in personal chat or in the comments.**

**I was actually trying to make it a bit light and fluffy until Ichigo is suffering from memory loss ( ꈍᴗꈍ)**

* * *

"I knew it!" A blurry voice of a woman yelled.

"The next set came so quickly?!" A man?

"C'mon let's go!" Another blurry voice, again a man.

"What are you standing there for idiot!" The same guy said.

Now the voices began to be more clear but his vision was still blurry as he forced his legs to work and tried his best to stand up.

"It's coming Ichigo! Get ready!" The same woman said.

"F-For what?!" Ichigo managed to croak out.

The blurry image looked at him but Ichigo couldn't make out her expression.

He didn't even know where he was standing. The ground was shaking violently.

He knew he was standing in a place that is dusty and it was dark here, nearly midnight. And the place smelled like . . . metal?

But he didn't know a single person that was calling out to him.

"We can't just stand here! We need to move out of the way at least!" The woman yelled.

Not knowing what to do next Ichigo decided to follow the orders he was being given and started running in the direction all the others were running.

Suddenly his feet hit what seemed like a hand and he fell.

He quickly looked behind and his vision was able to make out a woman on the ground who seemed to be unconscious.

He scrambled his way to the girl and tried to wake her up but she wouldn't, even after harsh tries.

"Ichigo don't stay there!"

"C'mon Ichigo! We are running out of time!"

"I-I am coming, j-just a second" Ichigo said as he picked the woman up and managed to get her on his back as he started walking.

He grimaced as he felt a sharp pain hit his ankle.

It was broken.

"I can do it! Just a b-bit more!" Ichigo told himself as he fixed the woman's position on his back again.

"No don't Ichigo!" The man yelled.

"Ichigo get out of there!" The other man yelled with all his might.

But he was too late. He heard a loud screech that seemed alot closer to a yell than paper tearing.

But why was he comparing the screech to paper tearing?

He squeezed his eyes shut to brace for the impact of whatever was going to hit him.

But just a second before it did, a shadow came over him.

He looked behind to see the woman that was yelling at him . . . taking the huge impact on herself.

"W-Why?" His voice asked weakly.

He didn't even know this woman yet her death felt like a million knifes stabbing him from every angle.

The woman shook under the impact but never did her feet leave the spot she was standing on.

"N-No! Please don't-" Ichigo said as he let the woman on his back lie down on the ground gently.

The woman that had taken the impact slowly kneeled down, as her legs had started to give in.

"N-No . . ." He whimpered.

He held the other woman's face and he felt his hands get wet.

Tears?

"Why did you do that?" Ichigo said, his own voice nearly breaking.

The woman said nothing, a smile graced her face.

"Thank you . . ."

". . . ICHIGO!"

Ichigo's eyes jolted open at his name as his breathing quickened.

First he heard commands like, "Breath slowly" and "Calm down".

Later he couldn't focus but after a few seconds he could make out the faces that were staring right at him.

3 faces, eyes filled with worry.

"Kyoraku san?" Ichigo whispered as he tried to get up.

"Kobayashi and Ise too. And don't get up for now" Takeru said as he lightly pushed Ichigo back on his futon.

Ichigo rubbed his eyes and yawned as he tried to look around the three faces.

"Don't look behind us, look at us" Nanao said.

Ichigo followed what she had told him but asked,

"Where am I?"

"My house buddy" Shunsui said.

Ichigo just nodded and started drifting to sleep again.

"No don't go to sleep again!" Shunsui said as he made Ichigo sit up and Takeru removed the covers.

"But whyyyy?" Ichigo whined as the cold air hit him.

"Cause we had been trying to wake you up since 30 mins. You were having a bad dream" Takeru said as he folded the covers he had taken off.

Ichigo seemed to remember the dream again as his eyes widened.

Nanao noticed that and asked,

"Wanna talk about it?"

Ichigo thought for a moment before he shook his head and said,

"It was a weird dream. Kind of scary but I didn't know what was happening. So it kind of just ended up being less scary"

Shunsui let out a sigh of relief then got up and walked into the hallway, to another room to get changed for today.

"What time is it anyways?" Ichigo asked as he got up.

"Well it's 4:30 in the morning" Nanao said.

"Huh?! That early?" Ichigo whined again as he sat back down.

"Well we usually wake up at 6 but we needed to give you your clothes and we also need to make some hearing blockers for you. For that we need to go to squad 12 earlier than we needed cause the meeting starts at 7"

"What meeting?"

"Well all the squads have captains and all the captains hold a meeting everyday. You will have to roam around with Captain Kyoraku everyday but you are not allowed to hear what happens in the meetings. So you will need to wear hearing blockers to the meetings" Takeru explained.

"Is everyone this strict around here?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"Yeah kid. But wait until you meet captain kuchiki" Takeru grinned as Nanao elbowed him.

"Captain, we are leaving. I will directly meet you at the meeting. You can take Ichigo to the 12th squad right?" Nanao asked as she got up.

"Yeah!" Shunsui said from the other room.

Looking satisfied Nanao looked at Ichigo and said,

"See you at the meeting kid"

And both, her and Takeru flashstepped away.

Ichigo first looked at the exit from where both of them had left and then stared at the garden outside but his mind was somewhere else.

He didn't know what to think of this dream. He knew it should have been scarry but it wasn't. He didn't even know the people that were in that dream.

But when be imagined being the person who knew all these people, he had shivers run down his spine.

What if something like that had happened to the people he loved?

Shunsui came out, fully ready and dressed up for the day but noticed Ichigo was still wearing his medical uniform.

He was going to ask where Nanao and Takeru had left Ichigo's clothes but then be noticed they were lying right in front of Ichigo.

Why is he just sitting there?

Shunsui then looked at Ichigo's face, it looked as if he was imagining something he shouldn't have.

Shunsui looked again but closely this time, as if he wanted to make sure he was seeing right.

Ichigo's eyes for some reason, held wisdom that was beyond his age.

It was true that sometimes children carry wisdom, yet this was different.

He couldn't help but stare at those amber eyes that seemed to look at the garden as if it would jump up and attack him any moment.

But with wisdom there was something else.

Confusion.

"Kyoraku san?"

Shunsui noticed that he had been staring.

"Yes Ichigo?"

"Are you okay?" Ichigo asked.

Stunned for a second, Shunsui didn't know what to say.

'Shouldn't I be the one asking that?' Shunsui thought as he scratched his head awakwardly and replied with a "Yes".

Then he noticed the bandages around Ichigo's stomach that had almost fallen off.

"Let me see your bandages" Shunsui said as he walked over and sat down in front of Ichigo.

The bandages on his stomach were already loose so all that was left was his head.

He loosened the bandages and to find not a single scar on his head.

"So your head injury is all healed up too huh?" Shunsui mused to himself as he collected all the bandages and got up to throw them out.

"You wear the clothes that Nanao chan gave you. I will be back in a few minutes then we can visit the squad 12 barracks" Shunsui said as he left the room.

Ichigo looked at the navy blue yukata and the dark blue obi and got up, his eyes sparkling with determination.

**(Yukata is a male kimono. I think? And it's pretty plain. It has no flowers or designs or anything like that. Only colour. And an obi is the middle belt like thingy that holds the Yukata together)**

Shunsui casually whistled a song as he threw the bandages in the trash and walked back into his house.

He opened the door to the bedroom which he and Ichigo shared, hoping to find Ichigo ready to go but the second he set foot into the room, he snorted.

Ichigo blushed as he looked up at the sudden noise and then angrily threw down the remainder of the obi.

"It's not my fault that tying a obi is so complicated" Ichigo said with a pout as he crossed his arms and looked away.

The first half of the obi was tied around Ichigo's shoulders while the other half was lying on ground. The only thing Ichigo had done correctly was wearing the Yukata.

Shunsui had tears in his eyes from stifling in so much of laughter.

Ichigo's eyebrow twitched and he said,

"I will show you! I can tie a obi just fine!"

**~1 hour later~**

"I should have tied the obi from the start" Shunsui said as they walked down the road that let to the squad 12 barracks.

"I will do it myself tomorrow" Ichigo said, still pouting.

Shunsui passed an annoyed look over the orange head before saying,

"No need. You just wear the Yukata and I will tie the obi for you. You take a lot of time"

Ichigo's only response was a small scowl.

'Well this obi really is a bit more complicated than the normal obi because all the Yukata in soul society have a bit of shihakusho influence on them' Shunsui reasoned with himself.

"And if we do this obi drama everyday then we will get late everyday" Shunsui added.

"We are late today? Because of me?"

When Shunsui noticed the frown and the guilty look on Ichigo's face he immediately regretted his own choice of words.

"No no, it's okay. The meeting starts at 7, we will reach the squad 12 barracks by 6. Mayuri can make a hearing blocker with 15 mins. We would actually have extra time" Shunsui said, his eyes gleaming with an idea.

Ichigo seemed to brighten up as he understood what Shunsui meant and then asked,

"Can we roam around in Soul Society?!"

Shunsui just smiled and Ichigo jumped up and down in excitement.

After some time they stopped in front of big steel gates. That were too big in Shunsui's opinion.

"Woah, is this squad 12?" Ichigo asked as he looked up to the point his eyes could.

The big doors opened slightly to let the visitors in.

"Yes it is kid. Now come over here" Shunsui said as he picked Ichigo up and rested him on his shoulders and held his ankles so he won't fall back.

"Why can't I walk by myself here?" Ichigo asked, his voice echoing as they had entered the big lab.

Shunsui eyed the weird machines and the stares of Mayuri's weird squad members.

Who knows someone would pick Ichigo up for an experiment?

'I mean, this kid has orange hair, knows how to perform Kidō and why shouldn't I mention how he appeared out of nowhere in soul society?' Shunsui thought.

"It's just that there is dangerous equipment lying around" Shunsui said instead.

"I see-"

"Well well well what do we have here?" Mayuri's voice boomed through the lab.

Shunsui's grip on Ichigo's ankle seemed to tighten.

Shunsui noticed Ichigo flinch a bit because of that but his mind told him,

'It's better than getting kidnapped'

But this didn't go unnoticed by Mayuri who just rolled his eyes.

Mayuri sighed and said,

"Idiot. Captain commander has already told me what to do. I will just make the hearing blockers and that will be the end of it"

Shunsui's grip relaxed.

"However, I would have loved to do some tests on the 'mystery' kid if you would allow" Mayuri said, a wide grin taking over his face as be held out an syringe innocently.

"I think we are good for today, right Ichigo?" Shunsui asked with a forced smile.

Ichigo had seemed to catch up to Shunsui because of Mayuri's 'authentic' behaviour and nodded furiously.

"Y-Yeah! I just want my uhh- my uhh-" Ichigo pulled at a strand of hair on Shunsui's head, asking him for help.

"-his hearing blockers if you please" Shunsui completed.

Mayuri's smile turned into a frown.

"What a shame. I could have upgraded your body a bit as well" Mayuri said as he put the injection back inside his hayori and turned around.

Ichigo just gulped but didn't let his fake smile waver.

"Come over here Shunsui. I need to take measurements of his ears" Mayuri said.

Even though doubts still persisted in his mind, Shunsui walked over to Mayuri anyways.

Because he knew even Mayuri wasn't a person who would go against old man's orders.

"Let's see" Mayuri said as he reached out for Ichigo's ear.

Ichigo just tried his best to hide behind Shunsui's head.

"C'mon kid, we don't have all day" Mayuri said as he tried reaching out again only to have Ichigo shift in the other direction.

Mayuri glared at Shunsui and before he could say anything, Shunsui asked,

"Do you have Akon san around?"

* * *

"Okay kid, here take this. Wear it in your right ear" Akon said as he handed Ichigo what seemed like an hearing aid.

"Only for one ear?" Shunsui asked as he helped Ichigo wear it.

"It is made like that. Even though it is made for one ear, It will work for both" Akon said.

Shunsui nodded as he concentrated on putting the hearing blocker on Ichigo's ears.

"Why aren't they fitting?" Ichigo asked as he felt Shunsui try to push the ring of the hearing blocker around his ear again.

Mayuri looked at Akon who said,

"Well I took the measurement of the left ear instead of the right ear"

Shunsui looked up but before he could say anything Mayuri said,

"The machine works like that idiot. He has to take the measurement of the left ear to make a hearing blocker for the right ear"

'Weird working machines of soul society' Ichigo thought as he grimaced when Shunsui tried to force the tool on his ear again.

Another minute had passed and Shunsui had seriously considered the hearing blocker was too small for Ichigo.

"Akon san, these are too small for-"

Suddenly when he touched the area behind Ichigo's ear, he felt something. It felt like,

"Thread?"

He then handed Ichigo the hearing blocker to hold and then shifted to look behind Ichigo's ear.

There was, what seemed like a braid? And it was wrapped in red thread.

It was tucked around Ichigo's ear which increased the size of his ear and that's why the ring wasn't fitting.

Shunsui took out the small braid and let it fall in behind Ichigo's ear.

How a braid that was behind the boy's ear got tucked around the ear was still a mystery to Shunsui.

Then he took the hearing blocker back from Ichigo and tried to put it on again.

Now it fit perfectly.

Ichigo touched the small braid in amazement.

"I didn't know you had this braid. It's so small yet it was so troublesome" Shunsui said and laughed a bit at Ichigo's astonished look.

"I didn't know I had a braid" Ichigo said, still amazed.

"I can see that" Shunsui said as he picked Ichigo up again.

Akon then patted Ichigo's shoulders.

Ichigo looked behind and Akon asked,

"Can you hear anything?"

"What?" Ichigo asked as he squeezed his eyes as if that would help him hear.

"Perfect" Akon said as he walked back to his work.

Shunsui then patted Ichigo's leg, asking Ichigo to look at him.

"What?" Ichigo asked again.

Shunsui pointed at his own ears and made a action that looked like removing of headphones.

Ichigo understood and carefully removed the hearing blocker.

"You can hear me now right?" Shunsui asked.

Ichigo nodded as he handed the hearing blocker to Shunsui for safe keeping.

"Well we lost more time that he had thought" Shunsui said as he half expected Ichigo to whine that they won't be able to roam soul society.

"It's fine. I get to see that old man again right?" Ichigo asked, excitement flowing out.

Slightly surprised Shunsui just gave a small smirk as they walked out the 12th squad.

"We could have actually roamed soul society but that would have been the case if I could use flash step. But I can't do that with you so it will take us extra time to reach there. So we can't risk roaming around-"

"It's okay Kyoraku san! I got to see another squad, that is enough for today!" Ichigo said as he gave a thumbs up.

Thankful that he wasn't demanding anything, Shunsui kept walking silently.

Then Ichigo seemed to remember something else and bent down a little to look at Shunsui dead it the eye.

"Oh and one other thing" Ichigo said.

"What?"

"I don't wanna go back to 12th squad. Ever." Ichigo said as he trembled at the memory of Mayuri holding out the syringe.

Shunsui said nothing cause he had decided the same thing the second Mayuri had taken out the syringe.

"Let's go, you can walk on your own, now that we are out" Shunsui said as he set Ichigo down.

And both of them walked towards the squad 1 barracks.

* * *

Shunsui reached the first squad barracks and found all the lieutenants standing outside.

"The meeting has started?" Shunsui said, wide eyed.

"No, but captain commander wanted to inform everyone of the current situation" Nanao said as she eyed Ichigo.

"I see. Well then here, take this" Shunsui said as he handed Ichigo the hearing blocker.

"Will you able to wear it? Or is it as complicated as the obi?" Shunsui asked with a playful smirked.

"I will do just fine!" Ichigo said as he wore the hearing blocker and stood tall.

It took a few seconds for Nanao to notice the braid.

"Why did you give him a braid? If you did it to hide the hearing blocker, then you should have made it in front of his ear, not behind" Nanao said as she bent down and observed it closely.

"No it was already there. I don't know how we managed to miss it" Shunsui said as he started to walk towards the assembly hall.

"You have been told to inform all the lieutenants of Ichigo as well right? Do it." Shunsui said before the door closed behind him.

"Hai captain" Nanao said.

* * *

Shunsui knew that everyone was going to stare at Ichigo but he didn't think that some of them would glare at him.

Ichigo shifted behind Shunsui's leg while Shunsui just awakwardly stood at the door.

Soi-fon was staring as if Ichigo would jump out and attack any moment.

Gin was glaring as if Ichigo would try to kill him with a trick.

Kenpachi . . . well Kenpachi just wanted to kill.

"Stand at your place Shunsui . . . And all the captains, stop glaring at the child" Yamamoto informed, his voice almost tired of these children.

Soi-fon and Gin obeyed while Kenpachi kept staring and said,

"Spineless brat"

Toshiro just rolled his eyes at the comment and Ukitake tried his best to make Kenpachi stop.

Yamamoto gave the hall another look before asking,

"Where are Tōsen and Aizen?"

"They have been sent to Hueco Mundo to collect the usual data about the concentration of the hollows" Mayuri said.

"When will they come back?" Yamamoto asked as he looked at squad 2 captain who handled the amount of time someone stays at Hueco Mundo.

"After a month captain" Soi-fon said.

Yamamoto nodded.

"And Shunsui, are you sure his hearing blocker is working?" Komamura asked.

Mayuri just 'tch' at his work being doubted and Shunsui snapped his fingers near Ichigo's ears.

But Ichigo kept staring at Sajin Komamura's helmet curiously.

"Looks like it is"

Yamamoto gave a satisfied nod before hitting his cane on the ground and saying,

"The meeting will commence now!"

* * *

"So anything special happened in today's meeting?" Nanao asked as they walked through the Soul society's streets.

"Well the usual. Except our little Ichigo here was being stared down by Kenpachi and it seems to have affected him" Shunsui said as he looked at Ichigo who hadn't spoken a word since then.

"He will get used to it" Another voice said.

Nanao and Shunsui turned around to find Takeru standing behind them.

"Where had you been?" Shunsui asked as now the four of them continued walking.

"Well i-i was umm. I was just roaming around" Takeru said, a bit of his nervousness being visible.

"Okay, for sure~" Shunsui said in a tone that said he wasn't buying it but he won't argue further.

"I really was!" Takeru said again as a light blush took over his face.

"Yeah, totally~" Nanao said in the same uninterested tone.

The walk around the busy street continued for another 15 mins which mostly consisted Takeru's bickering.

Suddenly Nanao stopped in front of a small ramen shop.

"Well, wanna eat?"

Shunsui raised his hand with a smile but before he could say anything Nanao said,

"No captain, No drinking"

Then she pointed at Ichigo with her cast.

Shunsui's hand fell down limply and Nanao gave a satisfied smirk.

'Ah, so until Ichigo is around, the captain won't drink' She thought happily.

"Well we can eat at least. Does Ichigo want to eat?" Takeru asked as he looked at the ramen shop then back at Ichigo.

But Ichigo just stared at a random sign of a optical lense shop.

"I asked if you wanted to eat" Takeru said again.

Again no response.

"What's wron-" But then Takeru noticed the hearing blocker that was still in Ichigo's ear.

He also noticed the braid but he thought he can ask about that later.

Takeru reached out and removed the blocker and Ichigo seemed to jump at his sense of hearing suddenly returning.

"So the reason he wasn't speaking all this time wasn't because he was scared of Kenpachi, he just had his blocker on?" Shunsui said as he took the blocker from Takeru.

'Idiots. I live with a bunch of idiots. I hope Ichigo doesn't turn out like captain' Nanao thought distantly.

"So, does he even need any food? He is a normal soul, he has no spiritual pressure" Takeru said as he tried to sense if Ichigo had any.

"Well that's true. But if wants to eat then he can eat" Nanao said then looked at Ichigo.

"Ichigo, do you want to eat anything?" Nanao asked.

Ichigo touched his stomach, as if trying to guess if he was hungry or not.

"No, I suprisingly don't feel hungry. At all?" Ichigo asked himself out loud.

Takeru ruffled Ichigo's hair fondly and said,

"It's natural for a normal soul to not feel hungry. They don't have any spiritual pressure"

"What's spiritual pressure?"

"Well we can discuss that at the table, can't we?" Shunsui said as Nanao asked the waitress for a table for 4.

"Are you sure you don't want to eat? You aren't hungry at all?" Takeru asked again.

"Yeah I am not hungry" Ichigo said again.

"So how wasn't he affected by the spiritual pressure of all the captains in the meeting room?" Nanao asked as they walked over to the table.

"Well I have already kept mine as lowest as possible and I assume so have you both" Shunsui said and the other two adults nodded.

"And old man had informed everyone of the situation before me and Ichigo arrived there. So maybe everyone already had theirs under control" Shunsui added.

"What about captain Kenpachi-"

"I was standing in front of Ichigo, or should I say he was hiding behind my leg. I had already formed a layer of my own spiritual pressure" Shunsui shrugged.

The waitress came and smiled as she handed the three adults a menu and gave Ichigo a rubik's cube to play with.

'At least they should have given a toy. What's a 9 year old going to do with a rubik's cube?' Takeru thought as he saw Ichigo look at the object calculatively.

"A rubik's cube huh? Let's see if you can solve it or not" Nanao challenged.

"You know how to solve it?" Takeru asked, slightly surprised.

"I don't know how but I kinda do" Ichigo said as he started solving.

Then time went by as they ate and talked about squad duties while in between they explained Ichigo what spiritual pressure was along with some facts about soul society.

When Ichigo wasn't able to complete the rubik's cube and sat sulking in the end, the waitress took pity and handed them the rubik's cube as a gift even when Ichigo himself had tried to decline the offer many times.

"Goodbye, have a nice day~" The waitress said as the 4 of them almost exited the shop.

"Thanks again miss! When I solve it completely I will come back and show it to you!" Ichigo stopped and said with a cheeky grin before turning and running after Shunsui and the others.

The waitress just chuckled with a hand on her mouth at his enthusiasm and got back to work.

After reaching the office, Nanao as usual yelled at Shunsui to complete his paper work and Takeru helped Nanao complete her own paper work.

And Ichigo on the other hand sat on the sofa all day and tried his best to solve the rubik's cube.

* * *

A few more days went on like this.

Ichigo and Shunsui would quarrel over the obi in which Shunsui always ended up being the one who tied it for him.

Then they would go to the meeting where Kenpachi would stare Ichigo down for no reason.

Then everyone would eat and Ichigo would try his best to solve the rubik's cube while the waitress would encourage him whenever she would be around them.

Then they would go to the office and try to do more paperwork instead of yelling. Even though they ended up with more yelling.

Shunsui and Nanao had noticed Ichigo being more happy when he was in the office.

"Most likely because the office is bigger than your house captain. He can play around here all day" Takeru said innocently but Shunsui fake cried at Takeru's remark about his house.

Then dinner would be at their own office, supplied by the squad staff and Ichigo would solved the rubik's cube at least once by then.

Ichigo would not eat dinner as well and would try to solve the cube again, failing as usual.

Then they continued on their way to their own dorms for a good night's sleep.

* * *

'Day after tomorrow I will have to report everything that has happened to the old man. He told me I could come earlier if there was a problem, but there hasn't been a single casualty. I told him everything would go normally' Shunsui thought as he shook his head as he set up his own futon and then looked at Ichigo.

"I don't understand how you can understand that" Shunsui said as he laid down and covered himself with the covers.

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked as he looked up from his book.

"That book kiddo, requires understanding of a person who is in 7th grade . . . minimum. And according to your age you should be in 4th grade right now. Were you a prodigy or something when you were alive?" Shunsui asked sarcastically.

"I don't know. This book seems pretty easy to understand"

"My point exactly"

"Hmm" Ichigo said as he continued reading the book.

Shunsui stared at the ceiling for a few more minutes before he thought it was time to call it a night.

"C'mon Ichigo, it's time to sleep" Shunsui said as he reached for the candle that was kept near Ichigo's smaller futon.

Ichigo looked up as if he was about to argue but for some reason the words died in his mouth and his scowl changed to a void expression.

Honestly, Shunsui was getting habitual to it.

Ichigo would want to argue or would like to ask for something but then he would just . . . stop. He would stop himself from doing that.

He couldn't understand why Ichigo won't ask for anything. The only two things Ichigo plays around with are the rubik's cube and the book which Ukitake had gifted him.

He saw Ichigo stare at the book for another moment. Not reading, just staring.

"Okay" Ichigo said as he closed the book and kept it near the candle stand.

Then he covered himself with his covers and turned to face the garden instead of Shunsui.

Shunsui stared at Ichigo's back for a second before giving up and blew some air over the candle, making the room completely dark besides the light coming from the door that led to the garden.

Ichigo was the one that had asked Shunsui to keep that door open so that he can see the garden.

Even though it was something normal people won't do, Shunsui agreed without arguement because it was the only thing Ichigo had asked for till now.

* * *

Morning came as quickly as the wind.

Shunsui yawned as he sat up and kept staring at his own garden for a 10 minutes straight.

"Why do I have to be the responsible one? There was a time where my lovely Nanao chan would wake me up everyday" Shunsui whined.

Then he looked at Ichigo who was sleeping soundly and said,

"And now I have to wake him up everyday"

Then he looked at the Yukata and obi that Ichigo had kept on the desk in front of them and said,

"And I also have to fight over the obi everyday"

Then he let out a loud sigh as he lightly slapped his own face, the noise woke Ichigo up.

"What's that noiseee?" Ichigo whined as he put the covers over his head and tried to fall back asleep.

"Ichigo wake up it's time to get ready" Shunsui said as he got up and stretched his hands.

He walked into the other room to change into his daily wear.

'It's like having a kid without a woman. Will there be any woman in my life at all? Now that Ichigo's with me, who would like a man with a kid? All the woman would end up thinking he is my kid' Shunsui thought helplessly.

When he was ready his face took up a tired expression as he realised what he had to do next.

"It's time for Obi fight" Shunsui whined as he opened the door to the hallway and then walked into the room that he and Ichigo shared.

But what he saw next was something he wasn't prepared for.

Ichigo was still sleeping.

That wasn't the shocking part but,

'This is the first time he hasn't obeyed something I have said' Shunsui thought, puzzled.

He shrugged as he walked over and shook Ichigo's shoulders and said,

"It's time to wake up kid. We don't want to be late right?"

But Ichigo didn't seem to respond.

Mild panic started to take over Shunsui as he shook Ichigo's shoulders again, this time harder than before.

But again he gained no response.

"Is it those weird dreams again? I thought it was only a one day thing" Shunsui asked himself.

He then quickly took off Ichigo's covers, hoping the cold wind on his body would wake him up.

But then he noticed Ichigo's jinbei was totally covered in sweat.

**(Jinbei are like pajamas)**

'Is he sick?' Shunsui thought quickly as he rested a hand on Ichigo's forehead.

'But he doesn't have a fever'

Shunsui was almost on the verge of sending a hell butterfly to call Nanao but suddenly Ichigo woke up and sat up straight with a gasp, his eyes wide.

"Za-Zangetsu?! Wh-What? Where-" Ichigo started blabbering.

Shunsui gave gave him commands like "Breath in" and "Calm down", just how he remembered Nanao do the first day.

Ichigo took another minute to return his breathing rate to normal before shivering and looking at the open garden door.

Shunsui without thinking twice walked over and closed the door that was letting in cool wind.

Then he sat in front of Ichigo again as Ichigo clutched his own shoulders, trying his best to remain calm.

"T-This dream . . . it was different than the first one I had. I-It was-"

"Scary?"

Ichigo looked up at Shunsui before gulping and nodding.

"Wanna talk about it?"

Ichigo opened his mouth but closed it as he looked down again, clearly implying he didn't want to.

'He did it again' Shunsui noticed.

"It's okay. Do you want to go to the meeting? I can skip it and-"

"No!" Ichigo suddenly said.

Shunsui just looked at him and Ichigo realised what he had done and said,

"Sorry. Let's just- let's just go"

"Are you sure? You aren't feeling sick or anythi-"

"No I am not sick. It was just . . . a very bad dream" Ichigo said as he finally loosened the grip on his own shoulders let his hands fall on the futon.

Ichigo then looked at Shunsui and smiled. Shunsui's expression softened at that and he got up.

"If you really want us to go to the meeting, then we would make it on time only if you get ready in 10 mins" Shunsui said as he ruffled Ichigo's head and walked out.

"You want to fight over the obi today too?" Shunsui asked as he stood in the hallway.

Ichigo just let out a grunt as he wore his Yukata and said,

"You can tie it for today Kyoraku san. But I will do it myself again tomorrow"

'Well one thing I won't have to worry about today. But . . .

Who was Zangetsu?'

* * *

"C'mon kid, why are you walking slower than usual" Shunsui said as he increased his speed a bit.

They were very close to getting late and he can't even use flashstep.

Ichigo finally caught up to Shunsui but he continued scowling, as if he was mad at Shunsui about something.

Shunsui ran a hand over his face before looking at Ichigo and asking,

"Okay what did I do?"

Ichigo looked perplexed for some reason and asked the same question,

"What did you do?"

"Yeah, what did I do to make you mad?" Shunsui asked again.

"Uhh, nothing?" Ichigo said, still confused.

"Then what are you mad about today?"

Still that confused look.

"I actually don't know? Why do you think I am mad?" Ichigo tried.

"Well you are scowling at everyone kid. You may not realise it but they are thinking you are a weirdo" Shunsui said as he glanced back at the woman and men who were backing away from the duo.

Ichigo himself looked back and noticed it. Then he stopped and bowed as if he wanted to apologize then again started walking straight.

"You know, that did nothing but it just made you more of a weirdo in front of them" Shunsui smirked.

"Well it's better to be a weirdo than people thinking I am going to jump on them any second" Ichigo said as he slumped a bit more.

Shunsui said nothing but increased his speed more. He could see the squad 1 meeting room right in front of him, just a few seconds more.

Then he saw Ichigo pout. He probably noticed that Shunsui had increased his speed.

Shunsui just shook his head and said,

"Let's go kid. Look, we are almost there"

They reached the outside of the meeting hall with 5 minutes to spare.

"Good morning captain, Ichigo" Nanao said.

"Good morning my lovely Nana-" A smack from a cast and Shunsui never completed his sentence.

Then there was silence for a few seconds as Nanao noticed Ichigo never greeted her back.

"Good morning Ichigo~" Nanao said cheerfully this time.

Still no response.

She looked down to see Ichigo zoned out for some reason and he was staring at Shūhei Hisagi?

"Why does he have a number tattooed on his face?" Ichigo asked out loud curiously.

Shūhei just looked down in embarrassment while Matsumoto held back her laughter.

"Well he has never told anyone the reason about that Ichisuma kun!" Yachiru said happily.

Ichigo pointed to himself and asked,

"Ichisuma?"

"Well you have orange hair and in japanese a orange is Satsuma! But your name is similar to strawberry so Ichisuma!" Yachiru said.

Ichigo said nothing but a "Oh".

Nanao looked at the scene that had occurred and looked at Shunsui for an explanation.

Shunsui just sighed and tiredly thought,

'Can I hand him to another captain? Just for one day?"

"I don't know why he is like this alright. He had a nightmare today . . . and is kinda grumpy for who knows why. When I asked him he seemed surprised that he was grumpy. Then he would walk as if we have all the time in the day. Kinda disrespectful today aren't we?" Shunsui whispered before looking back at Ichigo who was still zoned out.

"Is something wrong with him?"

"I don't think so. I thought he was mad at me for not allowing him to read his book yesterday but he said he wasn't mad at anything"

Nanao thought for a few moments before she looked at him and said,

"Well the meeting starts in a minute. We can talk to him after it gets over"

Shunsui nodded as he gave Ichigo his hearing blocker and Ichigo seemed to robotically take it and wear it before walking straight ahead, not even waiting for Shunsui.

Shunsui took a few fast steps so that he could open the door and Ichigo won't smash his face into it.

Nanao continued to look at the pair anxiously until they entered and the door closed behind them.

* * *

"That's the end of the report from the 10th squad" Toshiro concluded as he stepped back into the line.

"11th squad" Yamamoto said.

Kenpachi just grunted as he stepped ahead and said,

"We are doing just fine. We don't need men or more structures or shit"

Even while speaking all that Kenpachi kept glaring at Ichigo who still seemed to stay a bit behind Kyoraku's leg.

Ukitake stared at Kenpachi then at poor Ichigo. But he didn't know if what he was seeing was correct.

Ichigo's eyes looked fazed. As if he didn't know what was going on around him. He wasn't even completely behind Shunsui's leg today, he was mostly out and was staring into nothing.

Shunsui noticed Ukitake's stare. Ukitake also noticed that Shunsui was now looking at him.

Ukitake's eyes pointed at Ichigo, as if asking what's wrong.

Shunsui just shrugged, telling him that he has been like that all day.

But neither of them knew that both of them were talking about two completely different sets of behaviour.

Shunsui was mentioning how Ichigo had been grumpy all day while Ukitake was mentioning how emotionless Ichigo seemed.

'Why is this meeting so long?' Shunsui thought as he stopped paying attention to the meeting and stared out the window.

Suddenly Shunsui felt a tug on his clothes and he looked down at Ichigo who seemed to be still staring at nothing.

'What's up with him today?'

Another tug, this time harder.

Again Shunsui looked down only to find Ichigo doing nothing again.

Shunsui lightly scowled.

'Why is he getting on my nerves today? The poor thing isn't even doing anything . . . wait, maybe it isn't him that's on edge today and I am imagining things?'

"Kyoraku san . . . " Ichigo's weak voice called out.

Okay so this actually wasn't his imagination.

He looked down at Ichigo who seemed to clutch at Kyoraku's shihakusho for dear life and it seemed like he had problem breathing properly.

Shunsui looked at Kenpachi who seemed to be looking at the situation too. Kenpachi raised his hands and shook his head.

The meeting still continued in the background while Shunsui had hundreds of questions running through his mind.

'Did Kenpachi's spiritual pressure reach him? But I had created a barrier so what's-'

"Kyoraku san . . . I d-don't feel so good" Ichigo said as his breathing got more ragged.

**(Honestly this moment had killed me a thousand times in Infinity War. I am sorry for doing this to you guys)**

Now some people that were standing around Shunsui were aware of the situation and stood there, their bodies tense.

Ready to jump to action if something goes wrong.

Suddenly Ichigo's grip on Shunsui's shihakusho loosened and he fell forward with a loud thud.

"Ichigo!" Shunsui said as he bent down and carefully turned Ichigo so his face was towards Shunsui instead of the floor.

He noticed Ichigo's chest rise and fall.

He was breathing.

Relief washed over him but he knew this wasn't the end of the problem.

"Ichigo can you hear me?"

No response.

"Ichigo?" This time he shook his shoulders too.

Still no response.

A single glance at Unohana and the woman was beside them within a second. Even if Shunsui hadn't called, she was ready to jump in anyways.

Unohana seemed to check Ichigo's vitals as a green glow illuminated from her hands to Ichigo's chest and nobody in the room spoke until she was done.

One minute.

Two minutes.

Three minutes passed.

The tension in the room could have been cut with a knife. Even someone like Kenpachi was holding back his spiritual pressure.

All this time Yamamoto just stared at the scene intently.

"This is . . . weird" Unohana said, her face twisting in confusion.

"What's wrong?" Shunsui asked quickly.

"He is a normal soul, right?" Unohana asked to confirm.

"Yeah he is"

Her face seemed to twist more.

"What's wrong Unohana taicho?" Shunsui asked again, this time with a hint of desperation.

He noticed that Unohana was hesitating, as if she couldn't believe what she was about to say.

"He is showing signs of spiritual pressure exhaustion" Unohana said as she removed the hearing blocker from Ichigo's ears and gave it to Shunsui.

Shunsui looked at her, perplexed and said,

"But he doesn't have spiritual pressure so-"

"That's enough" Yamamoto interrupted calmly.

All the captains including Shunsui and Unohana looked at Yamamoto as he got up and walked towards the trio.

"Captain Unohana and Shunsui, take the child to 4th squad. I will join you as well in a short while"

Yamamoto said as he slowly walked towards the exit of the room.

"And Ukitake,"

Ukitake's worried eyes left the child and looked at Yamamoto,

"Inform Shunsui's vice captain to bring the two zanpaktō to 4th squad as well"

Ukitake wanted to ask further questions but Yamamoto just flashstepped away. Seeing that, he did so himself and started his search for Nanao Ise.

Everyone looked back at the scene. Unohana was helping Shunsui hold Ichigo on his back. When they were done both of them flashstepped out.

There was silence for a few minutes before Kenpachi said,

"So . . . I guess we are done with the meeting right?"

* * *

It didn't take Ukitake long to find where Nanao was.

Shunsui had informed him that after every meeting the 4 of them go to the same ramen shop to have lunch.

He went inside the shop and found hundreds of people roaming around and it was a total chaos.

**(It was a famous Ramen shop guys. It wasn't a stand, it was a restaurant sized one)**

'Where will I find her in this crowd?' He thought.

Then a idea struck him and he increased his spiritual pressure.

It didn't take more than a few seconds to everyone feel his presence and tremble in fear.

Ukitake never liked the idea of people fearing him but it was something that came along with becoming a captain.

"I am here for Nanao Ise?" Ukitake announced.

In one of the corners of the room Nanao stood up along with Takeru on her side.

Everyone silently made way for the two shinigami to pass.

"Please everyone, get back to enjoying yourselves" Takeru said before he, Ukitake and Nanao walked out.

When they were out Nanao asked,

"What's wrong captain?"

Nanao looked so worried that Ukitake just wanted to tell her that everything was okay but he couldn't do that.

"You both have been summoned to the 4th squad" Ukitake said grimly.

Both of their eyes widened in shock as they looked at each other then slowly looked back at Ukitake.

"Who is it?" Takeru asked.

"It's the Kurosaki kid" Ukitake said.

Nanao didn't want to waste another second as she moved her right leg to turn around and flash step towards the 4th squad but Takeru held her hand firmly.

Nanao aggressively looked into Takeru's eyes but Takeru said,

"There's more"

Nanao looked back at Ukitake who nodded and said,

"You have been ordered to bring those two zanpaktō with you"

Takeru looked at Nanao, wanting an answer but Nanao seemed to have the same expression as him.

* * *

Shunsui carefully laid Ichigo on the bed and Unohana sent for Isane with the help of a hell butterfly.

Even while they waited for Isane, Unohana didn't pause her process of trying to restore Ichigo's spiritual pressure.

"Close all the windows. He might be having a migraine due to so much lack of spiritual pressure. We don't want him to restrain from opening his eyes because of light"

Shunsui nodded as he closed all the 5 binders that were tied above the glass windows. Then he extinguished all the candles.

Now the only sources of light in the whole room were the healing glow from Unohana's hands and the candle near Ichigo's bed.

Then Shunsui anxiously waited. He didn't know what he was waiting for, yet he couldn't leave.

Shunsui kept staring as Unohana tried her best while he stood there and did nothing.

"Why isn't his spiritual pressure increasing even a bit even after I am trying to restore it?" Unohana asked herself.

"Unohana taicho, maybe he really is a normal so-"

"No captain Shunsui. He isn't a normal soul. Although I don't blame you for your views. I am sure you weren't able to sense his spiritual pressure. It's so low that only a healer like me or at least a vice captain like Isane could have sensed it" Unohana said.

"If his spiritual pressure is so low then why is it so hard to bring it back to it's normal level?"

Unohana paused in between as she bit her lip, showing she was holding back from saying what she was meant to.

"What is it Unohana taicho?" Shunsui asked, a bit more of persuasion in his tone.

"There is something wrong with his spiritual pressure" Unohana said as she gave up on holding any information back and continued with her healing.

"What do you mean?"

"His spiritual pressure . . . for some reason is getting used up"

What?

"What do you mean? Every person with spiritual pressure uses it up" Shunsui concluded.

"No, it's different. A person with spiritual pressure usually uses some of it and the person's soul produces two times the amount that was used up. But in his case . . . "

She paused again, not wanting to continue further.

"What is it Unohana taicho?" Shunsui asked, this time his voice didn't hold persuasion.

Instead it held, fear.

" . . . in his case, there is no source to produce it back"

Wait what?

Shunsui couldn't think, not because of shock but because it didn't make any sense.

How it was possible was a whole other point, But why it was happening was the main cause of confusion.

Unohana didn't need to look up to know what Shunsui was thinking.

"It's as if his soul isn't present there to produce it" she concluded.

"Indeed. I knew this was going to happen"

Shunsui and Unohana looked at the entrance to see Yamamoto standing there while Isane, Takeru and Nanao stood behind him.

"Old man-"

"I was out right now to bring this" Yamamoto said as he walked over calmly and handed Shunsui a book.

"What's this?"

For some reason Yamamoto looked amused by Shunsui's question and he said,

"It's a book on spiritual pressure working of a soul"

"And it's specially a class that you didn't pay attention to when you were in the academy" Yamamoto added.

"But old man what am I supposed to do with it-"

"Vice captain Ise and 3rd seat Kobayashi, step ahead" Yamamoto called out.

"Yes sir!" The duo said as they walked up to Shunsui, Takeru holding one zanpaktō while Nanao holding the other with her good arm.

Shunsui was still lost. What the old man was planning was something only he knew cause all the others seemed to be lost in thought.

"Isane, bring a reishi induced IV" Unohana ordered in between as she felt Ichigo's condition worsen.

Isane came back in a few minutes and walked past Yamamoto as she quickly handed Unohana the IV.

Yamamoto for some reason patiently waited for Unohana to try the IV.

And even after 20 mins of IV had passed, there was no change in Ichigo's condition.

And for all the work that was done, his condition seemed to worsen.

Shunsui looked at the scene as if he was trying to solve a puzzle when all of a sudden he realised something.

"Why can't I feel anything from those zanpaktō?" Shunsui asked.

"It's because I have casted a kidō barrier around it" Yamamoto said.

"But why-"

"You still don't understand Shunsui?"

Shunsui said nothing and Yamamoto looked at him mockingly as he said,

"Captain Unohana said that he can't produce spiritual pressure because it's as if his source isn't present. Am I correct?"

Unohana looked up and Yamamoto assumed that he was right.

"Have you ever wondered Shunsui that why the kid seemed more fresh and healthy when he was in your office?"

Shunsui linked his memory back to the time he and Nanao had a talk about how Ichigo enjoyed his time to the fullest when he was in Shunsui's office.

Nanao looked up and said,

"Well we thought that it was bigger than his house so he might enjoy it. It's a better place to play around than his house"

Yamamoto scoffed,

"Fools"

Then suddenly they heard choking coughs.

All their heads turned to Ichigo who was grasping for air. He pulled on the sheets as his chest contacted more and more, trying to suck in breath. But no sound came from him.

How would there be any noise if there wasn't any air in his lungs?

Yamamoto took the zanpaktō from Takeru and Nanao's hands and kept it on the foot of Ichigo's bed.

"Old man what are you-"

"Just watch, I am going to release the barrier I have formed around those zanpaktō" Yamamoto said as he opened his eyes and looked at the zanpaktō in front of him.

Suddenly, what seemed like a yellow coloured Kidō barrier appeared around the zanpaktō.

Then cracks started to form in the barrier.

And when it finally broke, the whole room drowned in invisible reiatsu.

The reiatsu was so dense that it felt like they were underwater.

Everyone was so mesmerized by the dense reiatsu that they forgot about Ichigo for a second.

Their attention was pulled back to the child when he suddenly took in a large amount of oxygen with a loud gasp and then coughed as he choked on the sudden amount of air.

The dense reiatsu had vanished when Ichigo had done that and everyone was able to analyse the situation again.

Unohana and Isane got to work and tried their best to stop the coughing while Shunsui, Takeru and Nanao kept staring.

"Are you implying that . . . No, it can't be" Nanao couldn't complete.

"Yes, They are his zanpaktō" Yamamoto said.

"But-"Nanao was interrupted again.

"In that book, the one which Shunsui is holding right now, it is clearly stated that when a shinigami attains a zanpaktō, the zanpaktō spirits are actually formed by parts of the shinigami's soul"

"But then why did this happen? It's not like his parts of the soul . . . i mean his zanpaktō were destroyed?" Takeru asked.

Unohana stopped her work for a second and then looked at Isane and said,

"You go explain it to them"

Isane was going to suggest switching places but one glance at Unohana's eyes and she obeyed.

"No that's not how it works 3rd seat Kobayashi" Isane said as she let her captain handle rest of the work.

She then asked Shunsui to give her the book and then she opened a particular page.

"When a shinigami physically stays away from his or her zanpaktō for more than two days, the connection is temporarily severed. So the zanpaktō wielder will start to feel withdrawal symptoms. And if it goes on for too long . . . " Isane said as he glanced at Ichigo.

"Even I didn't want to believe it at first. That's why the mere thought that the zanpaktō were his didn't pass my mind" Unohana said.

Noting the slightly cheerful tone, everyone looked at Unohana.

Then she smiled and said,

"His spiritual pressure, is returning"

A tension seemed to have lifted off the room as everyone saw Ichigo resting soundly while the IV was still inserted into his arm.

"But it's been a week since Ichigo has been near those zanpaktō" Shunsui said.

"Well he used to be close to those zanpaktō when he was in the office. So he used to get charged up I guess?" Takeru said with a shrug.

"So that's why he was all giddy when we were at the office" Shunsui said thoughtfully.

"So why did he get these symptoms all of a sudden? We went to captain's office everyday, so he should have charged up everyday" Nanao reasoned.

"It's because I had locked the zanpaktō in a invisible kidō 2 days ago" Yamamoto said.

Everyone's eyes widened as they looked at Yamamoto as if he had lost a screw.

"Old man? But why?" Shunsui asked, almost betrayed.

Yamamoto's eyes seemed to harden as he looked at Shunsui and said,

"Shunsui, did you ever ask the child why he wanted to touch that shinigami's hilt on the first day?"

Shunsui remembered the time when he had sent a squad 12 member away by threatening him. But he had never asked Ichigo why he wanted to touch the hilt so badly.

"No, I didn't"

"Then do so when he wakes up. You will know why I wanted to know if the zanpaktō are his" Yamamoto said as he slowly turned around and started walking out.

Shunsui lowered his head. Trying to guess what Yamamoto was planning to find out was taking a toll on his mind.

Someone tapped his shoulder and he turned around to find Nanao looking at him, something inside him said that what he was going to hear next isn't something good.

"What is it Nanao chan?" He asked.

"He won't wake up for the next whole week or more and he will have to stay here" Nanao said.

Shunsui raised his eyebrows but then he looked at Ichigo who was resting peacefully. He just lowered his hat to cover his face.

"I see, I guess that was supposed to happen" He said calmly.

Isane took over Unohana's work and the said captain walked over the captain of squad 8.

"His spiritual pressure had been bought to a very deadly and low level. So now that he is gaining it back, his body's response is to shut down and absorb it properly. So it will be a week until he wakes up" Unohana said.

"Then what about . . . why wasn't he hungry?" Shunsui asked as he looked up, as if challenging Unohana with the question.

"He wasn't hungry?"

"Yes, he wasn't. We even asked him if he was even though all of us thought he had no spiritual pressure, but he refused"

Unohana opened her mouth but she couldn't answer the question.

"You can't possibly convince me that it wasn't my fault" Shunsui said as he smiled reassuringly at Unohana and then flashstepped out of the 4th squad barracks.

Nanao sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose with her free hand.

Then she looked at Takeru and said,

"We will take turns. First day, you can be here"

Then without another word she flashstepped out of the barracks too, leaving Takeru to be there with Ichigo.

* * *

Finding Shunsui was a hard task. He was hiding his spiritual pressure well.

Nanao jumped out from the squad 13 barracks and sighed as she thought,

'I checked squad 8, squad 10, squad 7 and even squad 13! How come his spiritual pressure is located at so many places?!'

She shook her head and tried to sense him again.

Suprisingly, she found him back at squad 8.

Without wasting another second, she tried to reach there as fast as she could.

This time it seemed like Shunsui was letting his location know cause she was able to detect where he was precisely.

Nanao opened the door to Shunsui's house slowly and it opened with a low creak.

She then walked into the hallway and looked around, finding the kitchen empty, she then looked at the fusuma that led to one of the two bedrooms.

**(Fusuma is the classic Japanese door that has two doors which slide to opposite sides. Not like a shoji door which has only one door and it only slides to one side)**

She walked over and slid open one side of the fusuma and walked into the room.

The room smelled like sake and she felt her eyebrow twitch.

Then she looked at Shunsui who was sitting on the engawa.

**(Engawa is the verandha where people sit and have a nice garden to view. I think)**

The warm evening sunlight was falling into the room through the open garden door and Shunsui was sitting there calmly and sipping on sake.

She shook her head in disappointment as she walked over and stood beside her captain, but didn't release a word.

The silence after was inviting.

But it didn't last long.

"You know Nanao chan . . . it was fun to see you run around soul society, trying to find me" Shunsui said as he took another sip.

Nanao raised her good arm but refrained and when Shunsui snorted she just smacked his head so hard that the sake that was currently in his mouth had to be spit out.

"What was that for?" Shunsui cried with a pout.

"You had me running around purposely?!"

Shunsui just smirked and another smack was donated to his head.

"Well you see, I had some work that no one should have known about. So I had set that misdirection trap for ANYONE who tried to find me" Shunsui said as he rubbed his head and filled another choko.

**(Choko is the small sake cup. I am using too many japanese terms all of a sudden)**

"What were you doing captain?"

The hidden worry that was laced in her tone didn't go unnoticed by Shunsui.

"Nanao chan, I only acted the way I did at 4th squad, to get out of there" Shunsui said, ignoring her question.

'Oh, that's different than what I had in mind . . . ' Nanao thought.

Nanao suddenly seemed to brighten up even though she masked it.

"So you aren't drinking cause you think it's your fault, I mean, with what happened to Ichigo?" Nanao asked carefully.

Shunsui had never thought that Nanao would think like that. It had shocked him.

He was actually thinking that Nanao would be the one to catch up to his acting.

And he also assumed that's why she was searching for him.

"Nanao chan, since when did I need a reason to drink? I am only drinking cause the kid isn't around" Shunsui said as he raised another filled choko and drank it down swiftly, admiring it's taste.

Nanao awakwardly pushed her glasses up, realising she indeed had been thinking too much.

"I am going to allow you to drink today captain since you haven't gotten drunk for a long time. It's good actually, that you have a bit of conscience to not drink around a kid" Nanao said flatly.

Shunsui didn't say anything as he kept on staring at the big maple tree that shadowed a fourth of the garden.

'Honestly, even the garden is bigger than the house' Shunsui thought.

"What were you doing captain?" Nanao asked again, breaking the silence.

Shunsui put down his cup as he crossed his arms into his Shihakusho sleeves and said,

"Well I was in squad 12"

Nanao gave him a questioning look and Shunsui said,

"I wanted to find the squad 12 member that was sneaking around squad 8 the day Ichigo had arrived"

"The one whose hilt Ichigo broke? But why?"

"I wanted to find out something. Apparently, the squad 12 guy's zanpaktō has a black scabbard and a navy blue hilt"

Nanao realised what Shunsui was talking about and said,

"That's the same colour as Ichigo's zan-"

"Yes"

Nanao then bit her lip before asking,

"So are you suggesting captain, that Ichigo knew what his sword looked like even though he has memory loss?"

"I am not declaring anything nor am I saying that he had been lying. Zanpaktō work in a way that none other than their masters can guess"

"So that day, his zanpaktō may have told him-"

"We don't know yet Nanao. At least we have a lead as to why he did what he did. We still don't know why he tried to blast up that zanpaktō" Shunsui said as he got up and picked up the bottle of sake and the cup.

Then Nanao stared quietly as Shunsui walked towards the fusuma but stopped before he entered the hallway.

"But one thing I know for sure is, a child below 100 years shouldn't have a zanpaktō in first place" Shunsui said as he walked away.

Nanao looked at the now closed fusuma before she looked back at the sun that had finally set.

After a minute she said,

"What a day" and flashstepped back to her dorm.

* * *

**Spitfire hrt: I am glad you like it! I am sure more reviews will pop up if I continue writing! Hopefully . . . lol**


	7. Chapter 7

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**PLEASE READ:**

**You guys might feel like this chapter is rushed cause it REALLY is. I am sorry for the inconvenience but I will write the next chapter nicely!**

* * *

Nanao looked up from her paperwork.

He was still sleeping.

'It's not like he will wake up if I look at him every 10 minutes' Nanao thought.

She pinched the bridge of her nose as she set down the papers and the pen on her lap.

The moonlight coming from the window wasn't enough to do her work at night.

'It's more frustrating when I don't even have a table to do the paper work in the first place' She thought.

This had been her second day in continuation. Today was supposed to be Takeru's turn to stay here.

'But the damn bastard couldn't wait to meet Yua now that we were roaming around 4th division all day' Nanao thought as she clenched her fists.

She then looked back at Ichigo and thought,

'But still . . . it has been a month already. They said he would wake up in a week'

She looked out the window that was near the small desk beside the bed. Expecting Takeru to run into the room at any moment.

'Takeru gave me his job for 1 whole day' She shook her head.

Then she heard clicking of the door.

Quickly looking at the door to check for danger she shook her head at the sight.

Takeru was sneakily entering the room and he closed the door behind him slowly, so as to not make noise.

"Welcome back, Kobayashi" Nanao said sweetly.

Too sweetly.

Takeru flinched and slowly turned around.

"Well, i didn't know y-you were awake lieutenant-"

"Well I am. Wanna explain yourself?" Nanao asked as she got up and set her paperwork at the small desk.

"Uhh you see, I h-had to-"

"Wander off, right?" Nanao said, walking closer each second.

Takeru crouched down and braced for impact when they suddenly heard rattling of metal.

Without thinking twice they jumped into the shadows. The dark room clearly helping them.

Ichigo stirred in his bed, his head pounding against his skull.

Soon the smell of medicine hit him and he almost gagged.

'I am in the hospital?'

He tried to sit up but immediately lied back down and grimaced.

'Did a truck just run over me?' He thought as he felt all the muscles in his body contracting against his will.

He opened his eyes slightly and noticed that lights weren't on.

Or was it night?

Giving another try Ichigo sat up straight as he felt blood rush into his arms and legs.

He looked around but couldn't place a finger on what was what as it was too dark to observe anything other than his bed and the table beside him.

Even that much was visible because of the light that was coming from the only open window in the whole room, the one behind him.

'But why is the window open? It's cold outside'

His eyes caught the sight of the table to notice some 10-11 syringes and paperwork?

Who was here before he woke up?

He sighed as he tried to run his hand through his hair but suddenly felt something pinch at that forearm.

He looked back at his hand and noticed the IV that was attached.

'Is that . . . '

Suddenly it seemed as if all the memories of what happened in the last few days were being poured into his mind.

Along with his old memories.

And to his brain, it felt like cold water hitting a hot pan.

He held his head and yelled for all it was worth.

Nanao and Takeru who were watching from shadows took another tentative step back.

They had been ordered to keep their distance and take the zanpaktō away from Ichigo the second he showed signs of walking up.

Even though they had argued and had said that Ichigo won't be any harm to anyone, Yamamoto was far from believing them.

But seeing Ichigo yell made them think twice about their opinion on the kid.

And with the what if's that were running around in their heads and they believed that they should take the zanpaktō away from Ichigo as ordered.

But they were too late and too far from him right now.

While all of this was going through Nanao and Takeru's heads, Ichigo was having a crisis of his own.

Ichigo shivered at his memories. All those painful memories.

And now the nightmares he had, made sense too.

He took deep breaths to calm himself down as he cracked his knuckles and rubbed his face with his cold hands.

He kept staring at his hands before closing them tightly.

'I will figure out how to go out, soon. But for now . . . ' His thoughts trailed off.

Then when he had again gone quite for a minute to really observe his surroundings, that's when he noticed his zanpaktō on his bed.

"Shiro! Zangetsu!" Ichigo exclaimed wide eyed.

He yanked the IV needle out of his arm without thinking twice and scrambled toward his zanpaktō.

Nanao wanted to stop him from doing that but she felt a firm hand on her shoulder, stopping her from going any further.

Nanao looked behind her to ask what the hell Takeru was thinking but stopped when he mouthed,

'Let's just observe for now'

Thinking for a second before nodding silently, she looked back at the scene.

'I . . . I need to get out of here-' Ichigo thought as he tried to strap his zanpaktō in his obi.

But when they just slipped off his waist, he looked down and noticed that he was wearing a hospital robe.

Shaking his head at the fact that he won't be able to strap his zanpaktō, Ichigo decided he would have to just go with it and hold them in his hands.

'It's not like they are in shikai, I can hold them if they don't act up and stay in this state' Ichigo thought.

He then stood on the bed and stretched his arms, obviously noticing his small height.

'God this sucks' He scowled.

Nanao and Takeru took another step back at Ichigo's unusual behaviour and somehow Nanao's legs managed to hit a medical trolly that was behind them.

Ichigo's eyes turned to slits as he narrowed them.

Within a second's span he picked the syringes that he had seen and threw them at the source of the sound without hesitation.

Hitting his targets precisely.

Nanao and Takeru managed to dodge almost all of them but Nanao got hit by three in her arm while Takeru got hit by two in his stomach.

Both gulped nervously but neither showed any signs of revealing their identity.

"I advise you step out" Ichigo said coldly as he removed one of his swords from his sheath.

Takeru looked at Nanao, as if asking her whether they should tell him or not but Nanao just shook her head as a 'No'.

"I won't hold back from using my zanpaktō. Don't let my looks alter your thoughts" Ichigo said again as he jumped down from the bed.

His feet didn't make a single decibel of noise as they hit the ground, not even when he was walking towards the pair.

Nanao looked at his eyes and they were emotionless and dull brown eyes. They didn't hold any remorse whatsoever.

That's when she realised that Ichigo really was ready to kill if he had to.

Ichigo was going to step forward again when the door to the room creaked open, letting in enough light to luminate half the room.

Shunsui walked in, eyes closed and grinning with sake in his hands.

"Kobayashi! You won't believe how I snuck sake into the 4th" Shunsui said as he looked at the bottle of sake with admiration.

But then be looked up.

Ichigo's dull eyes seemed to go back to normal as he noticed the new occupant of the room.

"Ca-Captain?"

Shunsui tried his best to ignore the unsheathed zanpaktō in Ichigo's hands and smiled at him,

"Ma ma Ichigo, don't call me a captain! You don't work for my squad"

Ichigo didn't seem to hear him as he fearfully took a step back.

"Captain Shunsui?" Ichigo said, trying to confirm again as he kept walking backwards.

Shunsui's smile staggered at the tone of familiarity in Ichigo's voice when he called out to him.

As if Ichigo already knew Shunsui.

'Well he already knows me for the last few days so I guess . . . but why does it sound so-'

"Captain! Stay away!" Nanao called out.

Ichigo's head shot up as he finally looked at the people who he had considered as threats.

"Nanao?" Ichigo asked.

Nanao looked at Ichigo, as if not understanding why he would use her first name and even without a honorific like nee san or even just san.

Second by second, Ichigo looked more and more scared of his surroundings and it didn't go unnoticed by the three adults.

"Ichigo it's oka-" Shunsui said as he started walking towards him.

"No captain! Stay away!" Ichigo said as he sheathed his zanpaktō in an attempt to declare he didn't mean any harm.

Shunsui didn't dare to move after that.

He stood there and observed Ichigo and then realisation hit him.

"Ichigo . . . "

Ichigo's body that had been holding an attack stance towards Nanao and Takeru, turned so that it was facing Shunsui, but his face still found the floor more interesting.

Ichigo knew what was coming next. It was obvious.

"Did your memories come back?" Shunsui asked.

Silence.

"Ichigo?"

"I . . . don't know" Ichigo said, still staring at the floor as if it was the most fascinating thing in the world.

Shunsui then looked at Nanao and Takeru who winced as they took out the syringes from their bodies. It didn't hurt much but it was shocking to see how everything had unfolded in front of them.

Shunsui looked at the hospital bed to see the IV leaking on the bed, a sign that it had been pulled out carelessly.

This meant Ichigo had been considering whatever the hell it was, more important that his health.

"Why did you attack Nanao and Kobayashi?" Shunsui asked calmly.

Ichigo looked as if he was going to regret whatever was going to come out of his mouth next and that's when Shunsui knew he wasn't going to like it either.

"I thought they were assassins" Ichigo answered truthfully.

I mean, he had been attacked countless number of times by assassins during the war. Trying to kill the special war force as Yhwach had told everyone. If it wasn't for Yourichi teaching him . . . 'that', he could have never protected himself potentially.

Shunsui had to take a deep breath in at the boy's answer.

Assassins.

He thought they were assassins.

This meant a kid had previous experience with assassins.

He didn't even want to wonder why a 9 year old kid knew what assassination was.

Shunsui didn't miss Ichigo's shoulders tensing up a bit. Even the boy knew what kind of impression his answer was going to leave on them.

But one thing was clear.

With the way the boy was now acting around Shunsui, Nanao and Takeru, there was no doubt in his mind that Ichigo wasn't scared of the fact that they might know something he does.

What actually scared Ichigo more was being near them.

As if the boy's opinion on them had suddenly changed when his memory came back.

He needed to try something different.

At least nothing close to the normal fashion of approaching a kid who just got his memories back.

"Ichigo, what do you want us to do?"

This made Ichigo stop.

"What?"

"What do YOU want us to do in this situation?" Nanao repeated, finally catching on to what Shunsui was trying.

Ichigo knew they were trying a different approach. He knew they were trying anything to keep him calm.

Cause they had figured out he was going to make a run for it.

Ichigo felt the cold wind from the window flow against his neck and he shivered.

'Yes, I can do that?' He thought as he slowly started taking some steps back.

He acted scared and to be honest much acting wasn't needed.

"Ichigo, we won't come nea-" Shunsui stopped mid sentence as he finally noticed what Ichigo was trying to do.

Ichigo noticed the look the three adults were giving him and he thought,

'Well the cat's outta the bag so'

Without thinking twice Ichigo jumped out of the window.

**-Flashback-**

**"So what are you planning to do when you wake up Ichigo?" **Zangetsu asked as he looked at Ichigo who seemed to be deep in thought.

Ichigo silently looked up to where Zangetsu was standing on his pole.

Ichigo scratched his head before and said, "Well I think we should run off to Hueco Mundo"

**_"What for idiot?"_** Shiro asked.

"Well after I wake up I will or will not have my memories back. If I will, then I will most probably stay there for . . . I don't know, a few minutes?"

Shiro annoyingly glared at him and said,

**_"So ya are going to high tail just because ya can't handle seeing them again?"_**

"No. If I have an absolute reason to stay there then I will suck it up and stay. But I have some work in Hueco Mundo" Ichigo said as he got up and sheathed his zanpaktō, hoping his training session was over.

At least he wasn't a kid when he was in his inner world and he even had his sheaths along with his normal attire.

'I hated that Yukata and specifically that Obi'

"And I am sure that even after I run off to Hueco Mundo, I still won't be considered a threat" Ichigo said confidently.

**"And you are sure because?"** Zangetsu trailed off.

"I am still underage to be considered a person who needs permission to travel through dimensions cause a person my age can't possibly have enough reiatsu to do that. So when I run off, I will use another hollow's garganta to go to Hueco Mundo" Ichigo said.

Realisation suddenly hit Shiro as he said,

**_"The hollows that attack the rukon district . . ."_**

"Bingo"

Zangetsu closed his eyes, thinking for a minute before saying,

**"So according to them you would be a kid who ran off to Rukon district just because you got scared and had gained back your memories too quickly?"**

A nod.

**"Then you will sneak into another hollow's garganta to go to Hueco Mundo"**

Another nod.

**"Then you will do what?"**

"I will kill all the half bred arrancars Aizen is creating there with his half formed Hogyōku"

A smile crept on Zangetsu's face but Shiro still seemed to be in the dark.

Noticing that Ichigo asked,

"What's wrong with you?"

**_"Well ya still don't know how much time has passed outside" _**

'Yeah I wish zanpaktō could tell how much time passes outside without me being conscious' Ichigo thought as he scowled.

"So?"

**_"So when ya go out, you can forget us again if a month hasn't passed. The only reason ya remembered us again kingy is because you are INSIDE your inner world"_**

"Well if I haven't regained my memories then I will sneak out the second I do. And it's not like I won't remember I met you guys for this training session. I will remember as soon as I get back my memories" Ichigo shrugged.

Shiro's eyebrow twitched at Ichigo's laziness at the matter.

Ichigo eyed the zanpaktō as it worked himself up for nothing.

"What a drag . . . " Ichigo said as he slightly glared at Shiro because he had somehow sensed the arguement that was coming.

**_"You don't seem to get the point kingy chan!"_**

Oh now he was pissed. He hated that nickname and Shiro would NEVER stop calling him with it.

"I will get the point if you tell me what the point is idiot!"

Shiro seemed to relax his shoulders and rolled his eyes.

**_"Ya said you would run off and they will assume ya did that because you were scared shitless because of just recovering from reiatsu exhaustion and memory gain. But if you wake up, still don't have memories and then all of a sudden, in the middle of the day you run off, won't THAT sound suspicious? They won't even know you got your memories back!"_** Shiro snarled at him sarcastically.

"Oh" Ichigo said as he finally understood.

'That could actually be a problem' Ichigo thought.

Then he just stretched his hands and said,

"Well then we have to hope a month has passed. Nothing else can be done"

Shiro facepalmed but didn't argue anymore and Zangetsu just smiled.

That's how Ichigo was.

When Ichigo was surrounded by him and Shiro, he acts the way he was earlier. When he was 18. But the second he remembers something from the past, he changes drastically.

He goes back to become the kind of person he hated in the past.

The kind that feels everything is his fault.

"You guys . . . "

Catching the tone, Shiro and Zangetsu frowned.

'Not this again . . . ' Shiro thought.

They found Ichigo staring at the dark and cloudy sky as rain still poured all over him.

" . . . have been tolerating this rain for 6 years. I am-" Ichigo couldn't complete it.

And of course he didn't need to, but they knew he would.

Ichigo raised his arm a bit to collect the rain water in his palm. Then he looked at the water that had collected, looked at it with eyes filled with hatred.

Ichigo felt irritated by it. All the time he was training in his inner world the rain had never stopped. Not once.

Heck it didn't even slow down. Always running on full speed.

His clothes along with the clothes of the two zanpaktō, always remained soaked with the cold rain.

He couldn't handle being beneath it even for the small amount of time he had been inside his inner world, they had been in this rain for 6 years.

"Sorry"

Even Shiro didn't say anything at that. Even if they told Ichigo that the rain wasn't his fault, it would still be of no use.

The rain would be here until the sadness persisted.

And the sadness won't go away until the mission was complete.

**"You are gaining consciousness"** Zangetsu suddenly said as the black windows of the building were gaining a tint of blue.

It was time to go.

Ichigo let his hand fall back as the rain in his palm splattered on the cold and wet ground.

"Yeah r-right. Umm, I will just go" Ichigo said as he jumped off the building, the gravity suddenly acting normally for him.

He stared at his two zanpaktō who were still standing and watching him fall perpendicularly to them.

And then he fell into the deep blue ocean. He saw the light darken as he drowned deeper and deeper, until he reached his consciousness.

**-End Flashback-**

"Well at least it worked out according to the plan" Ichigo said as he continued hiding behind one of the houses.

He was currently in the 7th division. The exit being only 4 divisions ahead.

Ichigo shook his head as another wave of pain hit his brain.

"I probably didn't lose captain" Ichigo whispered to himself as he glanced at the silent and dark ally at his right.

"Who's there?" Ichigo called out.

Ichigo felt that he had seen someone's shadow from the corner of his eyes but he couldn't make out who it was.

'I can't use shunpo when someone's watching me' He thought.

When nobody answered Ichigo grit his teeth and took another run until he was behind another house.

And from there, he started flashstepping in the direction opposite to the one he was running to at first.

'They must have figured out I was going for the white way gate. So when they notice I am not in 7th division anymore they will probably head for that gate. It's a long way to go opposite but it's distracting. Plus the Blue stream gate links directly to the forest' Ichigo thought as he exited the 7th division.

**"And you can even use shunpo efficiently, without being spotted that is. Nobody would be around if you are going opposite. But still Ichigo, keep up your guard" **Zangetsu voiced in his mind.

Acknowledging the man Ichigo continued to use shunpo but stayed low instead of using the roofs.

After a few more minutes on the road, Ichigo was having a mental debate with himself and his zanpaktō.

'Now that I am awake, I know 3 weeks have passed cause obviously I have my memory back and it had been a week since I came here'

**"What are you asking Ichigo?"**

'Why do you think I woke up 3 weeks later? I mean, the amount of spiritual pressure I have must be very low because of the updated Gentei reiin. If that's so then I should have gained that much amount in a week' Ichigo thought.

**"Yes but Ichigo, you have forgotten what a seal does. It doesn't cut off your spiritual pressure and give you only the amount allowed until you use it up. A seal controls the amount you can use. It keeps the amount that you use at a constant value"**

'So what you are saying is that when I ran out I actually . . . completely . . . ran out?'

**"Yes. You haven't eaten anything for months. Your only source used to be spiritual pressure induced IV back at war. But you didn't have that for a few weeks. And the fact that we were kept away from you also led to this. All of your spiritual pressure was getting used up. What will the seal give if it's main source is also used up?" **

Ichigo thought for a moment and said,

'So I actually had to recover all of my spiritual pressure, which is ALOT. So that's why it took so long?'

**"That's true. And the reason Shunsui wasn't able to sense anything fro-"**

'I actually have that figured out. I already had so less amount of spiritual pressure that most of it was used in normal bodily functions. Obviously without a source, no spiritual pressure is produced so I wasn't giving out any extra . . . I was literally just surviving'

Ichigo felt his zanpaktō approve.

'By the way, where is Mr.Broody?' Ichigo asked.

**(I would like to mention that all of the zanpaktō conversations are either in the inner world or through mind, like how he is doing right now. If the zanpaktō manifest in the future, then it will be mentioned. Please don't get confused when I write 'Ichigo said' because he said it to his zanpaktō, which means he thought)**

**"Shiro?"**

Ichigo only nodded and Zangetsu sighed.

**"Well he is still confused about the argument you had with him. But leave him be, he will bounce back in no time. Right now you should concentrate on the task in hand. I believe that your shinigami spiritual pressure and your squad 8 seal won't drop the seireitei walls"**

"Yeah and they don't even have a record that notes which squad member went out of seireitei. The walls don't drop in on a kid who isn't capable of taking legal permission. So basically my seal will allow my exit and nobody would know" Ichigo said.

Ending his conversation with his zanpaktō, Ichigo tried to increase his speed.

'Just 3 more divisions now . . . If I had my normal spiritual pressure I would have reached there in a minute'

* * *

Ichigo wiped his forehead and flicked the sweat that had collected on his palm.

"I am still not on a hundred percent am I?" Ichigo asked.

**"It would take another week for you to fully recover Ichigo" **Zangetsu said.

"Well at least we reached the gate" Ichigo said as he stared at the forest ahead.

"Should I try to exit? I mean, they haven't even deployed shinigami at the gates or not even-" Ichigo stopped as he realised something.

"I am going to the hollow prone area of Rukongai. So I bet there would be shinigami there. How will I get past them?"

**_"Ya aren't dressed like a shinigami king. If anything, ya look like a kid from Rukongai"_** Shiro mused.

'Look who's back' Zangetsu and Ichigo thought.

"That's comforting . . . but what about the two zanpaktō that I seem to carry around baka" Ichigo said as he ran towards the forest, deciding to come up with a solution on the way.

**_"We can dematerialize if ya want. Me and old man were somehow able to do that when we first landed here. But we can't maintain that for too long. As you can remember, we were exposed when that Kobayashi idiot and captain Shunsui had shown up" _**Shiro retorted, annoyed.

"Yeah I actually wanted to know about that. I can understand that you were able to dematerialize when you weren't given an asuichi. When I was 15, you just materialized on my pure will. But since the start of the war, you guys are practical zanpaktō with an asuichi. How did you guys dematrialise in that form?"

**_"I was wondering the same thing kingy. But I think it has something to do with ya having hollow powers or something to do with how you attained your powers from the kuchiki brat, not your own. Ya had unlocked your own later but even that one didn't have asuichi. So I am thinking that it has to do with that" _**

Deciding that the concept wasn't that important Ichigo stopped in his tracks to find the hollow zone.

"Where is-"

Suddenly a shrill cry rang out in the forest.

Without waisting a second Ichigo ran towards the source.

* * *

Somewhere in soul society 3 figures could have been easily spotted, running over the roof tops.

"Captain! Don't you think we should have informed captain commander and asked for back up?!" Nanao said as she stopped on one of the roof tops.

Takeru and Shunsui stopped as well.

"Nanao chan, if we had waited then we would have lost him and we never would have known where he went" Shunsui said.

"It's not like we know where he is now" Takeru whispered to himself.

"And captain, we went towards the white way gate on your orders. But he wasn't there. So why are you so sure he ran east, the opposite direction?" Nanao asked and crossed her arms impatiently.

Shunsui just chuckled and pulled his hat down.

"For some reason, I don't think little Ichigo is a idiotic kid when he has his memories intact" Shunsui said and continued his march in the opposite direction.

Takeru and Nanao exchanged a look of dismay before reluctantly following their captain.

* * *

"Call for back up! I repeat, call for back up!!" A shinigami yelled as she dodged another attack from the hollow's tail.

The hollow's tail was throwing small balls of green spiritual pressure at the three shinigami. From the looks of it, they didn't even look like seated members.

'Soul society and their stupid old system of positioning' Ichigo thought as he looked at the scene again and frowned.

The attack from the hollow's tail wasn't a cero or bala, but it could damage a normal shinigami.

Ichigo sat on the tree patiently as be watched the events unfold in front of him.

From what he could gather, this hollow was wearing a black long japanese coat that had a hood that covered his face, only to not leak the information of him being a arrancar or an adjucha.

The hollow was able to communicate and had a light purple coloured body of a normal hollow.

It didn't take Ichigo long to say it was an adjucha.

"I think it's time you guys dematerialize" Ichigo said.

Slowly the light blue hilts vanished from his hands, the effect then traveled to the black sheaths until both of them were completely gone.

**_"We can stay like this only for 20 minutes king"_** Shiro said.

Ichigo nodded and then jumped down the tree, falling into the bushes miserably.

But on purpose.

'Time to refresh my acting skills' Ichigo thought with a smirk.

"Who's there?!" The hollow growled.

Ichigo stumbled out of the bushes and fell on his face.

Inwardly he scowled,

'How much more stupid can I possibly look?'

He looked up fearfully and decided to take a step back.

The three shinigami gulped at the tense situation they had fallen into.

The female looked at the two males that were on her side.

A silent conversation passed and all three of them brought their palms up, ready for Kidō.

"Hadō number 4: Byakurai!" All three of them yelled and three blue beams of condensed reishi hit the hollow's skull.

The hollow howled in pain and yelled as his right sleeve started to burn off.

"You fools! You will pay for this! I am going to make sure this kid doesn't survive!"

Ichigo being only a few meters away from the hollow, didn't move.

He just sat there, shivering and getting scared. At least that's what it looked like on the outside.

Not only because he had to stay there for the hollow to capture him but also because the hollow didn't scare him much.

The three shinigami didn't make a single move.

'One wrong choice and the kid would be done for' They thought.

They watched carefully as Ichigo sat on their left while the hollow stood on their right.

'Standing in between isn't going to do anything!' One of the males thought.

The hollow got closer this time, now standing in front of the quivering boy.

'C'mon hollow, pick me up and take me with y-'

Ichigo thoughts were cut off as he suddenly flinched and touched the right side of his neck. It felt like hot metal had touched his skin.

"Agh!"

**"Ichigo, your Gentei Reiin has become visible again!" **Zangetsu warned.

Ichigo's eyes widened as he looked at the three shinigami who seemed to have noticed his movement, but not his seal.

Ichigo didn't remove his palm from his seal.

"I will kill you right here boy!" The hollow yelled as he raised his tail to attack.

'Oi that's not how it was supposed to go! I can't even attack back!' Ichigo thought as he closed his eyes and got ready for impact.

But it never came.

Ichigo slowly opened his eyes to see Shunsui standing in front of him. One of his zanpaktō out and blocking the attack.

Ichigo looked back at the ground as it shook because of the impact.

Shunsui looked behind him and sighed as he noticed that Ichigo wasn't planning to look at him any time soon.

"Are you okay Ichigo?" Shunsui asked anyways.

Recieving a nod Shunsui looked back at the hollow.

"An adjucha? These are rare" Shunsui mused.

"H-How dare you block my attack?!" The hollow said.

But even the hollow was in his right mind to attack a captain, which was obvious because of his Hayori.

"I will come back for the boy! Remember that!" The hollow yelled as he went back into a garganta.

'And there goes my perfect plan' Ichigo thought as he lightly face palmed.

Deciding that Ichigo wasn't going to talk to him anytime soon Shunsui walked over to the three shinigami and asked them what had happened.

Nanao and Takeru were on their way when they felt Shunsui increase his spiritual pressure a bit.

The reason they were away was because, somewhere in between they had decided that they should split up.

'We would find him more efficiently if we look at different places' Nanao had told Shunsui.

Ichigo slowly got up, trying to think of a way out.

**_"We still have five minutes left king. Ya want us to revert back?" _**Shiro asked.

"What else can be done Shiro?" Ichigo said. It was more of a statement than a question.

Suddenly Ichigo felt the air turning dense.

And that's when he heard it.

The screeching sound of the garganta opening were like bells of heaven to his ears.

He heard the garganta open right beside him. He had seen it on time and could have moved out of the way but that would be a waste of an opportunity.

He noticed that the hollow inside was the same one and it was trying to reach out for him.

'So I still have a chance'

But what he hadn't expected was the hollow to grab onto his right arm that had been covering his seal all this time.

"Ah no!" Ichigo yelled, not noticing his mistake of raising his voice.

Shunsui turned around the second he had heard Ichigo yell but he was too far away and Ichigo had already been grabbed.

"Captain!" Ichigo yelled instinctively so that Shunsui paid attention to his face instead of his neck.

But he was too late.

Shunsui had seen the seal. He was sure of it.

Even though Shunsui might not give out a expression that may give a clue as to if he really had seen it or not, but Ichigo had been with that man long enough to know what his expressionless face means.

Shunsui still tried to reach out to him but his hand missed Ichigo's by inches.

Everyone watched as the last remains of the garganta closed. Leaving behind nothing.

"Captain!" Takeru and Nanao yelled as they finally reached there.

Shunsui just stood there in a trance. Thinking how he let the same hollow out of his grasp . . . twice. He even let the hollow kidnap a kid.

Noticing how Shunsui just stood there, Nanao gulped in fear.

"Captain?" Nanao called out again, this time softly.

Shunsui slowly looked at his subordinates and shook his head.

"Ohh n-no . . . " Nanao said as she slowly sat down on the ground, trying to accept the fact that Ichigo really was gone.

Takeru didn't know what to do as he helplessly set a comforting hand on Nanao's shoulder.

* * *

The hollow seemed to happily carry Ichigo on the rough blue pathway the hollow had made in the cold garganta.

"Underestimating me?! Hah those fuckers!" The hollow said.

Ichigo had been tossed around in the hollow's arms since the last 10 minutes and now it was getting on his nerves.

"Put me down" Ichigo said calmly.

The hollow snapped his head at Ichigo's direction and scowled.

"What did you say brat?! How dare you talk back to-"

"I said put me down you son of a-"

"Kids don't curse you midget!" The hollow yelled as he hit Ichigo's head.

"Oh I am so done" Ichigo said as he materialized his zanpaktō and in an instant held them both against the hollow's neck while he hanged limply on the hollow's arm.

The hollow slowly looked back at Ichigo, wondering if he had made a wrong choice when he had decided to pick this kid up.

"Put. me. down." Ichigo warned again.

Without another thought the hollow put Ichigo down gently but the cold metal was still against his neck.

"Wh-Who are you?" The hollow asked.

Ichigo silently looked up and glared at the hollow. If looks could have killed the hollow would have died then and there.

This wasn't the crying kid he had picked up a few minutes ago.

"Somebody you don't wanna mess with" Ichigo said before he sheathed back his zanpaktō.

The hollow let out a sigh of relief and then looked at the pathway that had formed.

His own pathway was crumbling behind them while the place the kid was standing on was a perfect square.

"Follow me" Ichigo said as he started walking in front of the hollow, creating a much better pathway that looked like a paved road.

After the hollow was done admiring the pathway he looked back at the kid and smirked. He raised his tail and silently began gathering reishi for his attack.

"Don't even think of doing anything funny just because you are behind me" Ichigo warned as he glanced back knowingly.

The hollow retracted.

'Just what is this kid' The hollow grumbled in his head.

They kept walking until they reached the end of the garganta.

Ichigo stopped in front of the exit and looked at the hollow behind him.

The hollow quivered under Ichigo's gaze but Ichigo just patted his skull out of nowhere.

"Wha! What are you doing?!" The hollow said as he jumped back a few meters.

Ichigo just scowled,

"I was trying to make you feel better. Looks like it's not going to work. So I should just get to the point right?"

The hollow said nothing and Ichigo continued,

"I am going to stay with you from here on out. You can't deny me or I will not refrain from killing you"

After absorbing the information the hollow yelled out,

"But why me?! What have I ever done to you, you brat?! You can't live with me!-"

Ichigo let the hollow complete his break down and when he was done he said,

"Are you done? Okay, you see I don't have a problem living alone but I need to find a place where spiritual pressure cannot be detected from the outside. I know most adjuchas find a place like that and hide in groups. It would be troublesome to find a place like that. So I am coming along with you"

The hollow was going to argue again but Ichigo said,

"And besides, I think you do need protection from the half formed arrancar Aizen has let out on a spree. He just wants his arrancar to destroy each and every hollow that comes in sight to get stronger. I will be there to save your group from that"

"And before you ask, yes I AM capable of saving you. I assume this garganta is going to straight away open at your lair?"

The hollow did nothing but gave a small nod. He still had a million questions running through his mind.

Like why did the kid give out a bit of hollow reiatsu? Why did he carry around not only one but two zanpaktō? The kid knew about what Aizen does in Hueco Mundo? Heck not even the captains in soul society knew that?

The atmosphere had now lost it's humorous tint as the hollow knew that out of all those questions which one was the most important.

"You know what you are getting yourself into right?" The hollow asked.

Him being a idiotic hollow never came in way of fearing Aizen Sosuke.

Ichigo said nothing as he kept staring into the hollow's eyes with determination and no self doubt.

"Okay" The hollow said and both of them exited the garganta without another word.

* * *

Yamamoto tapped his crane on the ground fiercely.

"Why didn't you bother to ask for backup the second the boy tried to run away?!" Yamamoto voice boomed through the meeting room.

All the captains glanced at Shunsui for an answer who still looked like he wasn't regretting his decision.

At all.

The room fell silent as Shunsui stepped ahead, the wood creaking as he did.

"Old man, if I had waited for backup the kid would have been gone by then. I had actually managed to capture him but the hollow drawed in for a second attack and took him away without me noticing. That, I admit is my fault"

Yamamoto let his shoulders relax and looked down as if asking himself to calm down.

'They are still children' His brain chanted like a mantra.

"You knew that the zanpaktō were his. So why?" Ukitake asked.

"The only reason that he tried to run away is because he got his memories back. The way the kid behaved was expected. So if I had called for back up, not only I would have been too late but also, the kid would be scared if we let dozens of shinigami follow him around with zanpaktō" Shunsui reasoned.

"And I think all of this would have riled him up" He added as he looked at Unohana.

Unohana looked down in disappointment but said,

"However much I would like to disagree, what Captain Kyoraku did was absolutely correct at that time Captain commander"

"And i think our first task should be saving the child" Komomura said.

Yamamoto looked around the room as if searching and then looked at Soi-fon,

"You are to send search parties in Hueco Mundo at once! Don't come back to my barracks without him. Find the child and bring him back safely for interrogation"

Even though Soi-fon still had her doubts with the kid, she wasn't a person to go against direct orders.

"Yes sir!" She said.

"Anything else Shunsui? Something you might have missed?" Yamamoto asked as he bore holes in Shunsui's hat as the man stared at the wooden floor.

Everyone waited and after a few seconds came the reply,

"No"

Yamamoto spared another look at his student before shaking his head.

"Alright then, this meeting is dismissed!" Yamamoto said with another cane tap and everyone left.

* * *

"How did it go?" Nanao asked as soon as Shunsui stepped into his office.

Shunsui removed his hat and set it on his table.

"Could have gone worse. At least there are going to be search parties sent to Hueco Mundo"

Nanao seemed to relax a bit at that but something still disturbed her.

"Did you tell them what you saw?" Takeru asked as he got up from the sofa to look at his captain as if telling him this was a serious matter.

Shunsui said nothing and Nanao said,

"From the looks of it, captain didn't"

"Nanao chan, I don't know what they will do to him if they find out he has a squad 8 Gentei reiin on his neck without even being in soul society before"

* * *

The dark cave was surrounded by nothing but silence, the only noise being the sound of the flames of a wooden torch flickering.

The five hollows first looked at Ichigo, then at the leader adjucha, then back at Ichigo.

They continued this until they could believe their eyes.

"What were you thinking boss?!" One of the hollows yelled.

"It's a fucking kid in hospital robes!"

"And he has stolen two fucking zanpaktō boss!"

"Soul society will be after us in no time boss!"

And the complaints went on and on until the said boss who was the one that kidnapped Ichigo, let his tail hit the ground firmly and they shut up in a second.

When one was still persistent enough to complain, Ichigo shot him a glare and the hollow didn't say another word.

'This kid has some serious anger management issues' The leader thought as he looked at the scene.

It took a while to explain the situation to the five members of the group.

Ichigo noticed that the hollow that had kidnapped him was actually leader of this 6 man group.

After realising what Ichigo was here for, the hollows looked at the kid.

"You know what you are getting yourself into right?"

'This kid body isn't helping me at all. Heck even hollows are worried about me' Ichigo thought as he lightly rolled his eyes.

"I am sure of it. I will be here only for a while. I will pay you back by protecting you from the half formed arrancar"

Usually gaining a hollow's trust wasn't a easy task as there were a lot of chances of betrayal from both the sides.

But the hollow reiatsu that Ichigo had been giving off said something else.

And the day went by as they agreed on the matter.

At least some of them.

* * *

Shunsui walked inside his house after a month of roaming around the 4th and 8th division.

He slid open the fusuma and walked into the well lit room.

The moonlight shined upon the two sets of futon near the shoji door. One small and one big.

Beside the futon, on the desk was a neatly folded navy blue yukata with a dark blue obi.

Shunsui removed his hat, set it beside the Yukata and set up his futon.

Then he closed the shoji door that was letting in the cool air from the garden.

* * *

The hooded hollow sneakily looked at the boy as he stayed awake and kept looking at his zanpaktō.

"I know you are hiding there" Ichigo called out as he continued staring at his swords.

The hollow came out from behind the wall and looked at Ichigo.

"Why won't you sleep?"

Ichigo glared at him as if telling him to mind his own business. But being the grateful and mannered kid he was, he didn't.

"I can ask you the same thing" Ichigo grumbled.

The hollow walked over to Ichigo and sat beside him.

"You should know something about me" The hollow said.

"I am not an adjucha"

Ichigo smiled and said,

"I had that figured out when they called you boss. I first thought you were an adjucha because you can talk but it seems you have normal human intelligence"

The hollow nodded and before he could have asked Ichigo said,

"No i won't kill you. You are probably hiding because you don't want to follow Aizen's orders right?"

"Aizen sama had made us, half arrancar, using his half formed experiment. Then he let us out so that we can kill more and become strong. But unlike me, some weren't formed. They were already as strong as me and then Aizen took them in. I didn't want to fall into his clutches as i had some weaker friends to look over"

"So you decided to hide?"

"Yes. Although, i still have two friends to find. They got lost somewhere in between when Aizen set out a unannounced patrol"

"Do you have a clue as to where these friends of yours might be hiding?" Ichigo asked as he thought he might be able to help.

"Yeah i know perfectly where they are. I was actually going to go get them but when Aizen sama's troops appeared i had no choice but to use the garganta and hide somewhere. But when i reached soul society, the shinigami attacked me and i fought them and lost my temper. Resulting i-"

"-You kidnapping me"

The hollow . . . arrancar said nothing and stared at the dessert in front of them. The walls of the caves keeping in their spiritual pressure.

"What's your name kid?"

Ichigo paused to consider for a moment wether it was safe to give out his information.

But what could giving his name do?

"Kurosaki Ichigo. Yours?"

The half arrancar let out a low rumble and said,

"Pesche"

"I see"

Wait what?

"Pesche?!" Ichigo said as he held the said arrancar's coat collar.

The half arrancar looked at Ichigo as if the boy had lost it.

"Hey kid, my name isn't that bad alright! It's at least better than strawberr-"

"Where are Nel and Dondochaka?!"

* * *

**BioHazard82, 777torn777 and DiamondCutterTM:**

**I don't know how to thank you guys enough!! It sometimes gets hard to write when you don't know whether what you are doing is right at all. So comments like these make me feel confident enough to write the next chapter! I hope you continue liking what I write! *bows***

**Zeynel:**

**I see! Actually I thought that Yukata was used for male while Kimono was used for female. And most of the male Yukata I see don't have much of anything on them, so I thought that they were actually made like this lol. Totally my fault. Thank you for clearing that up!**

**Emu Thing:**

**I see that you have many issues and I will do my best in clearing that up!****So the first, second and third seat thing is totally my fault. I actually didn't know that but I hope that you could manage to understand it the way I have written, sorry! *bows*****And the spiritual pressure and zanpaktō thing, I had actually been planning to raise some suspicions among the readers through confusion. I hope you understand everything after this chapter cause I have explained everything in this one.****The kidō spell thing will be revealed later!**

**No fun in not leaving spots right?**

**; )**


	8. Chapter 8

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

* * *

It had been 3 months.

3 agonizing months with Pesche and his five hollows.

And Ichigo was sure he was going to lose it soon.

Ichigo once again looked up at Pesche and his buddies who seemed to be playing a game of poker.

Where did they find the cards in the middle of a dessert? That's a question better left unanswered.

He looked at the flame torch and rolled his eyes. This little wooden stick had been their only source of light in this large cave. Ichigo could have stealthily moved out of the cave from the shadows it was sporting but he was worried about finding Nel and Dondochaka. Or more precisely, he was worried about how Pesche was going to find Nel and Dondochaka.

As much as he wanted to never see them again, he knew their lives were more important than his unstable emotional condition.

Ichigo looked out of the cave again.

Aizen, Tōsen and Gin had gone back to Soul Society, Ichigo was sure of it.

But Pesche had insisted that they should hold out for some more time and then go find Nel and Dondochaka.

According to what Pesche had told him, Nel and Dondochaka were currently in another hide out and were just waiting to be rescued. Ichigo knew he wasn't lying cause he could sense Nel's spiritual pressure even if Nel's hideout was doing a good job at hiding it.

But for some reason, Pesche had been declining his offer of help in finding Nel and Dondochaka for some reason.

However stupid Pesche might look, he was wise in his own ways.

So there was a reason for his behaviour and Ichigo knew what it was.

Not only one but quite a few.

First, Pesche just straight out didn't trust Ichigo.

I mean who would? A kid you kidnapped is actually capable of killing you with his dual zanpaktō? Yup, nobody was trusting him with that.

Second reason was that Pesche actually knew Ichigo was serious about going to Las Noches to kill the half arrancar.

Obviously Pesche wouldn't want a kid to get himself killed so whenever Ichigo told him that they should head out so he could go to Las Noches, Pesche would always wave him off by saying that he knew Ichigo was just kidding.

2 months passed like that and Ichigo had his thoughts fixed on a final conclusion.

He was going to lie.

'Look at me, meeting my dead commrades after 9 years again only to lie on their faces' He had thought.

For the next month he had convinced Pesche that he is giving up on the idea of going to Las Noches but he still wanted to help find Nel and Dondochaka.

Pesche obviously had been reluctant at first but Ichigo was a 8 year old kid with a 27 year old's acting skills. And much more if he added the 3 wars and all of the bullshit he had to go through.

At the thought of his age, Ichigo noticed that his height had increased but it hadn't increased to what Ichigo was expecting.

He was surely going to have a _talk _with Kisuke the next time he met him.

He was supposed to grow to his full height and receive back all his equipment in the span of 3 months after his 1 month as a kid.

Yet here he was, stuck in the same body and the same hospital gown with his height increased only around 4.5 cm.

He was a bit taller than 6'1 the last time he was in his original body.

If his height increased only around 4.5 cm in 3 months which means 1.5 cm in single month, he knew trouble was coming his way.

It was easy math.

It was going to take _3 years_ for him to go back to his normal height.

'Yup, surely killing Kisuke' Ichigo thought again, this time determined.

**"Well at least you will gain back your cloths and shit soon"** Shiro said.

This caught his attention.

"How is that possible? It has been 3 months already and I am still stuck in this hospital gown"

**_"We can feel your power surging in a different way. It's similar to the feeling when Inoue used to heal you while your shihakusho would reform as well._** **_And you would have obviously noticed your seal that is fully visible now" _**Zangetsu said, sarcasm lingering somewhere in his tone.

Ichigo obviously hadn't noticed.

He picked up one of his zanpaktō that rested on a stone beside him and stared at his neck's reflection and soon spotted his squad 8 seal visible in all it's glory.

While escaping from Soup society his seal had flashed for an hour before disappearing again. Now it was stuck with him permanently.

"What will I do if Pesche asks about this? No fuck that, what will I do if _anybody _asks about this?" Ichigo grumbled as he remembered Kisuke who had advised him to use makeup.

**"If ya are talking about Pesche or Dondochaka or even Nel, they won't notice actually. But if you are talking about ANYBODY else besides them, then you will have to use make up" **Shiro laughed.

Thinking this wasn't a matter that needed to be discussed right now, Ichigo got up and picked up both of his zanpaktō.

Carefully walking on the wet rocky floor of the cave Ichigo made his way towards Pesche and stood behind him, waiting for Pesche to notice him.

One of the 5 hollows looked at Ichigo and said,

"Hey boss, the brat wants something!"

Ichigo clenched his fists as if trying to calm himself down. He had been doing that since 3 months and now it was just too much. 5 wimpy hollows trying to make fun of a lieutenant sounded like a ant provoking a tiger who hadn't had a good night's sleep.

"What brat?! Getting angry?" Another hollow asked as he pushed a finger at Ichigo's chest making him back away a few steps with the unwanted force.

**"Oooh bad move"**

"You think this is funny huh? Want to see what this 'brat' can do?" Ichigo asked, a tick already appearing on his forehead.

"Bakudo no 1: Sai!" As soon as Ichigo said that, all five hollows fell on the big rock in front of them that they called a table.

Pesche wearily looked behind him as he forced a smile and asked,

"Did you just cast the first binding spell on five people instead of one?"

Ichigo didn't bother to answer him as he started to walk towards the exit of the cave.

"We are leaving. Right. Now." There was no questioning that tone.

Pesche just have a hasty salute and said,

"YES"

* * *

Shunsui walked through the silent ally with Nanao by his side who spared her captain quick glances every now and then.

"You know Nanao chan, you looking at me every second won't change my decision"

She didn't say anything at that and looked away.

It was true that she wanted her captain to think twice but she herself wanted to be a part of this.

So there was no place for arguement.

"It's not that. It's getting late so we should hurry" Nanao said and pushed her glasses up.

Shunsui looked up and saw that the sun indeed was setting.

Smiling at Nanao he said,

"Yes let's go"

And they started flashstepping towards the first division.

Yamamoto set down his last round of paper work and got up. He then walked over to the balcony to stare at the sunset when he felt two familiar spiritual pressures approaching.

Knowing who they belonged to, Yamamoto shook his head in dismay.

'Just when I thought my day was over'

He heard Chojiro walk towards him carefully, as if he was thinking whether he should ask what he was going to.

"Captain, should I tell them you aren't in your quarters?" Chojiro asked, hoping it would help.

Yamamoto looked at his vice captain slowly and then said,

"No don't. Shunsui wouldn't have made his presence felt if the matter wasn't serious. Besides . . . it's been three months since the incident"

Chojiro didn't need to be told what incident Yamamoto was talking about so he just bowed in understanding and went back to stand at his position beside the door.

The large doors suddenly creaked open to reveal the two expected people walking into the room.

"This time the wood smells like lavender. New candles old man?" Shunsui asked playfully as the doors closed behind him.

Yamamoto understood that Shunsui didn't want to discuss the matter right away and then looked at Chojiro.

"Leave us alone" Yamamoto said.

Chojiro knowingly glared at the duo for a second before walking out and leaving behind the three occupants.

"What is it that you want Shunsui?" Yamamoto asked with his back still towards them.

When he received no response he looked back and asked,

"Well?"

Shunsui and Nanao looked at each other as if they were still having a silent debate on the matter but one look of encouragement from Shunsui and they proudly stood in front of Yamamoto.

Yamamoto eyed his two subordinates before nodding to himself muttering something like, 'I knew it would happen soon but . . .'

"Captain, is there any news on Ichigo? Have any one of the search parties found anything?" Shunsui finally asked.

Yamamoto knew that Shunsui wasn't beating around the bush when he called him 'Captain' instead of 'Old man'.

Remembering the latest reports from squad 2 Yamamoto said,

"No there has been nothing. No sightings, not even clues that would suggest that the boy is alive"

Nanao looked at Shunsui who just looked down to regain his thought process.

"Captain, we have a proposal to make" Shunsui said as he crossed his arms.

Yamamoto raised an eyebrow and walked over to his desk formally before saying,

"Proceed"

"I am asking for permission to visit Hueco Mundo personally along with my Vice captain to retrieve Kurosaki Ichigo"

Shunsui took in a deep breath after that. The word finally being out even though he knew it was going to happen was stressful.

Yamamoto stared at them with a look that said he already knew this was going to happen. But beneath his eyes there was slight annoyance.

"And how will this benefit Soul Society in any way?"

The shift in tone didn't go unnoticed by Shunsui and Nanao but they were determined enough to press forward. All the while Yamamoto leaned back into his chair, knowing that he had made a valid point.

Nanao bit her lip before saying,

"There is Captain commander"

Yamamoto raised one of his eyebrows at the statement.

Now this was something Yamamoto wasn't expecting. He had read all reports on the boy and even though the boy had reiatsu, he was sure that he won't survive in Hueco Mundo's climate. With no food and dangerous hollows lurking around, be was sure the kid was dead.

So he was pretty damn sure that there was no way that even sending search parties was useful. But he had done that out of spite for Shunsui's sake.

However heartless he may seem, he had realised that Shunsui had formed a deep bond with this child.

"And what would that be?"

"Well-"

"Well?" Yamamoto pushed again.

Nanao shivered a bit at the spiritual pressure being poured at her but she knew this wasn't even the captain commander's full extent so at least he wasn't trying to kill her and was ready to listen to their reasoning.

"When Ichigo was admitted in 4th division, he was physically inspected as well. There was nothing wrong with his body as his skin had come back to it's normal tint and he was healthy again. But there was something wrong with his arms . . . "

Yamamoto went over his memory of reports again, including the report he had just filed a few minutes ago.

Finding nothing similar to what Nanao was trying to suggest, he asked,

"There was nothing special about his arms in the medical report"

Shunsui raised his hand, guilty yet smirking at his own intelligence.

"Because I was the one that had told Unohana to not give you this specific piece of information"

Yamamoto seemed to tighten his grip on his cane but calmed himself down hoping . . .

"There must be a reason for this kind of behaviour Shunsui?"

"Of course there is" Shunsui said with a pout.

"And what might the reason be?"

"Cause we weren't sure if what she had told me was true"

Yamamoto narrowed his eyes.

"What might not be true?"

Shunsui tapped Nanao's shoulder, asking her to continue.

"Well the reports came in from the physical examination in the 2nd week of his black out. He had . . . hundreds of syringe marks on his forearm. As if he was injected with . . . I actually don't know what"

Yamamoto considered the thought for a moment before asking,

"What are you implying?"

Nanao bit her lip again. But this time she wasn't nervous, she was utterly disgusted.

"I think he was an subject for lab experiment"

**Somewhere in Hueco Mundo Ichigo sneezed.**

"What?" Yamamoto asked, not believing if his old ears had heard right.

A lab experiment? This was something that didn't even cross his mind. And he knew something so ridiculous should not cross his mind.

"Well, his health had been declining for some reason we don't know. It was as if he hadn't been fed anything for the last 6-7 months. He also had the syringe marks of course and they showed signs of being roughly inserted. It's as if he wasn't being taken care of properly. We had been, for a long time, trying to find a reason that would not end up to this. But we really did end up with this result"

Yamamoto stroked his beard deep in thought.

But what about-

"His zanpaktō. This might also explain why he has zanpaktō. Not only one but two" Shunsui added.

"And it also explains his traumatized behaviour when he finally retrieved his memories back" Nanao said.

Yamamoto scowled inwardly.

"You still haven't answered how it could it benefit Soul society"

After sighing Shunsui let out a soft laugh and Yamamoto still patiently waited for an answer.

"I think you still don't get my point old man" Shunsui muttered, pulling his hat out of his line of sight.

"We don't think we should go save the kid because I think we should help a poor traumatic kid" Nanao said.

"Then?"

"We want to go retrieve him personally because I think he might be a threat to soul society" Shunsui said as he stared into Yamamoto's eyes trying to find any sort of confusion.

Yamamoto stared at Shunsui for a few seconds before taking out a new stack of empty papers from his drawer. The drawer's creaking felt like it could be heard for miles in the heavily silent room.

Yamamoto placed the paper at the centre of his desk and stared back into Shunsui's eyes.

Shunsui slowly looked at the desk. From the distance he was standing he could not see what was written on the paper but the paper was blue in colour.

Shunsui could have recognised those papers anywhere.

New mission papers.

* * *

"Who is he Pesche?" Nel asked innocently as she looked at the orange headed figure who for some reason was standing guard in the middle of the desert.

It had been half an hour since Pesche and Ichigo had found Nel and Dondochaka. Once Ichigo had looked over them for any injuries he had decided to stand some feet away.

This had been bothering Nel for some time. It wasn't everyday you meet a kid of your age and height while roaming around in Hueco Mundo. Dondochaka was just as shocked but decided to leave the introductions to Pesche.

"Some kid who decided to help us" Pesche said as he shrugged.

"A kid helped us?!" Dondochaka yelled.

"Should Nel go and meet him?!" Nel asked, eyes glowing with excitement of gaining a new friend.

Pesche gave a shakey thumbs up and Nel ran towards the boy.

She tapped Ichigo's shoulder and said,

"Hello! My name is Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck! It's a pretty long name so just call me Nel!"

Ichigo still kept looking ahead, not sparing her a glance.

Nel frowned and tapped Ichigo's shoulder again, this time more harshly.

"Nel talked to you so you should talk back like a good boy!"

"Don't bother me kid" Ichigo said rudely before turning and walking towards Pesche.

Nel turned to look at Ichigo go, tears forming in her eyes.

Before Ichigo could have said anything to Pesche he heard Nel yell at him again.

"How can you talk like that? You are a kid too!" Nel yelled.

Ichigo almost facepalmed at his own stupidity but he had a aim in his mind and the plan that will lead him to his aim didn't involve Nel in it.

"Pesche, I am going to Las noches . . . I have some work there" Ichigo conveyed as he tried his best to ignore the glare Dondochaka was sending his way.

The hyperactive hollow actually cared deeply for Nel.

By this time Nel had started crying more loudly to get his attention and Ichigo felt his heart tear apart.

Yet he couldn't see her. Not after what had happened to her.

"Are you crazy?! Are you planning to get yourself killed kid?! You said you wouldn't go there!" Pesche yelled as he held head in shock.

Ichigo continued to look at the big castle that was far away as he said,

"Don't worry. Aizen and his commrades have gone back to soul society cause their time is up. If they don't then they will get in trouble. And only one of Aizen's arrancar is capable to even use the equipment in Las Noches that can sense spiritual pressure. That was the only reason I even came out today or else Aizen could have sensed me"

'I think I would be safe cause Szayel Aporro isn't a fully formed arrancar yet. So I guess he won't be around the machines and his lab much. Pesquisa would be a problem but being in the past, only some of them would have actually tried learning the technique. Even though Aizen can use his Kyokasuigetsu to make his clone go to soul society, he still won't do it. However strong his illusion might be, if someone like Yama jii will see an illusion every meeting, he will get to something is wrong'

"What kind of an idiot are you?! I thought you were just kidding when you said that you wanted to kill the half formed arrancar!" Pesche yelled as he grabbed Ichigo's collar and shook him violently.

Ichigo slapped Pesche's hand away and glared mercilessly at him for a second before frowning at his own actions.

The hollow shivered and hid behind Dondochaka.

Ichigo held out his hand to apologize but nobody was ready to listen.

"Save me Dondochaka! He will kill me!" Pesche said.

Dondochaka for the first time in his life was determined enough to save his brother and sister and so he ran towards Ichigo who just held out his hand and let Dondochaka hit it.

The hollow fell down crying and Ichigo winced. However much he thought these were annoying, he just couldn't hear anyone of them crying.

Crying? Right he forgot about Nel.

Ichigo turned to run towards the Las Noches castle and slowed down a bit where Nel was still on the ground, crying.

"You know, whining like a little kid would never make me introduce myself to a person like you. I am Ichigo Kurosaki and I don't like people who are weak. Like you."

Ichigo had said those words with so much coldness in his voice that Nel felt a shiver run down her spine. She wasn't even able to cry about it.

Ichigo then continued on his way to Las Noches as he left Nel in dust.

But at least she was alive.

He couldn't let her depend on him again. He couldn't let her down again.

He just couldn't let her die again.

**_-Flashback-_**

_"You know, you should have bought more growth serum. Kisuke has tonnes of it lying around. Why did you bring only one tube when you knew that we were going to be out for more that 12 hours?" Ichigo said as he shook his head and scowled._

_Nel who had been hanging from Ichigo's shoulders for the past 2 hours just giggled._

_"We were out since 6 AM Itsygo! Who wakes Nel up at 6 AM?! Nel was tired so Nel thought that she should get a ride back to base!"_

_"What if something happens and we get attacked again?!" Ichigo said._

_"Then big brother will protect me!" Nel said as she ruffled Ichigo's hair, ruining his already bed ridden hair._

_"Stop it! And of course I will protect you but stop calling me brother. I already have two sisters and they are already a handful!" Ichigo exclaimed as he held out two fingers._

_Nel just grinned and kept irritating Ichigo as they walked silently through the almost destroyed 63rd district of Rukongai._

_He jumped over the wooden fence that said he was now in the 62nd district._

_"Why did bouncy give us a mission that was so far away from base?!" Nel complained._

_"Bouncy?" Ichigo asked, grimacing as he tried to not even guess who she was talking about._

_"That girl who lives with you! Her name starts with a 'O' I think!"_

_Ichigo shook his head as he knew who she was talking about._

_"Orihime? Bouncy? Why would you-" Ichigo stopped mid sentence as he realised why and didn't take the nickname topic any further._

_But his big brother senses kicked in as he started a short lecture._

_"You know that Orihime has been working hard with Ukitake san to properly plot who should be sent to which district based on the specific person's powers. Not only that but they themselves travel to some of them and conduct missions themselves. I don't even know how I would have handled such a stressful job. Being a lieutenant is hard enough but assigning squads to the whole of soul society, Hueco Mundo and Human world? That's a lot of work Nel. Orihime everyday comes back to squad 8 barracks tired to her bone but still manages to get up after 3 hours. Even I sometimes manage to sleep more than 4 hours. You should respect that and do it without complaining. You get to sleep for 6 hours just __because you are a kid"_

_"Nel is not a kid!"_

_'That's what you collected from my whole speech?' Ichigo thought and stared straight ahead._

_There was a few minutes of silence before Nel got climbed up a bit more on Ichigo's shoulder so she could whisper in his ear._

_"Itsygo . . . you know that someone has been tailing us for some time right?"_

_Oh he knew alright._

_Had known for the last 30 minutes._

_That was why he was trying to act normal and talking casually while his eyes scanned a mile ahead every second. Finding a opening to escape._

_Or at least let Nel escape while he fought._

_Ichigo suddenly felt the air getting cold._ _Then a sound from the nearby bushes set him off._

_"It's getting late, we should hurry" Ichigo said as he felt Nel tighten her grip on his shoulders as a response._

_Then he shot_ _off at the best speed he could manage. Breaking his own record if he had time to thike about it._

_But even if it was sufficient for escape, it wasn't much if he had a person riding on his back._

_"Itsygo! You are going very fast!" Nel screamed as she felt her grip loosen on Ichigo's shihakusho._

_Before Ichigo could slow down Nel fell off his shoulders and hit the ground __500 meters below him._

_"Nel!"_

_Ichigo jumped towards the limp but breathing form of Nel but just when he was a meter away he felt something pinch at his skin._

_He looked at his arm and noticed the dart that had pierced it didn't take him long to notice the contents of the dart were missing too._

_"Who's there?!" Ichigo called out into the night_ _as he took out the empty dart and threw it on the ground _

_Recieving no response Ichigo turned to Nel again only to see she was gone. His eyes widened and he furiously scanned the area until his eyes fell on a shadow in the forest._

_"Who are you?!"The figure just walked out with Nel in his arm, holding her using her collar as if she was a piece of dirt._

_He was dressed in all black. Not shinigami black but ninja. He seemed to be holding what looked like a kunai to her throat._

_Ichigo gulped but didn't let his gaze waver as he made no move that might threaten the man._

_"Leave. her. alone." Ichigo gritted out._

_"Or what?" The man asked monotonously__ as if__ he knew Ichigo was going to say that._

_"Or I will kill you"_

_This time Ichigo's calm voice didn't hold any kind of fear but pure rage._

_Even though Ichigo couldn't see the man's face, he knew the man smirked behind his black mask._

_"Don't get so pumped up. That serum is supposed to weaken you. The more you move, the more you weaken" The man said smugly._

_"Honestly we thought we had lost you. An impressive skill of shunpo. I guess can't expect anything less from the apprentice of the Flash Goddess"_

_Ichigo didn't miss the 'we' in his sentence. So there were more._

_The man dropped an unconscious Nel on the ground and he then stabbed the ground with his kunai_ _without warning as he had realised Ichigo now knew he wasn't alone._

_And within a second, hundreds of similar looking men held Ichigo down on the ground._

_Just like Soi-fon's zanpaktō, this kunai was a calling signal._

_Ichigo struggled under their grasp. He tried finding a way to free himself but the ninjas knew what they were doing._

_They had his palms covered and separated so he couldn't use Kidō. They had held the hilt of his zanpaktō on his back while they kept his hand away from the one on his waist. They had held down his legs so he couldn't kick while someone also held down his lower neck so he couldn't headbutt._

_He was completely immobile._

_"Hey! Get off me! He-"_

_"Ichigo Shiba"_

_Everything slowed down for Ichigo. He didn't know if it was the drug that had been inserted into him or it was because of __what he had heard just now._

_Nobody used his real __last name._

_Most didn't even know his real __last name._

_"Shocked?"_

_Ichigo didn't say anything but just glared._

_"I hope after this you will know not to let down the Shiba clan" The man said as he bent down and held Nel's neck._

_"Wait! But I am a Shiba clan member! You are Shiba members right?! What did I do to you guys?! I don't even know you so leave the kid out of this!" Ichigo yelled as he managed to push some of the guys off him_ _just with brute force._

_"No Ichigo Shiba. We left the Shiba clan when it lost it's honour. We must avenge our clan by destroying whatever has caused it's downfall"_

_Someone grabbed Ichigo's neck that forced him to look at the ground instead of the front._

_"Then why are you fucking with the kid?!" Ichigo had now pushed more that 20 people off him yet there were many more that kept pushing him down, not allowing him to reach for his sword._

_"Don't struggle Ichigo. We will take away anything that is precious to you. Just how our clan was stripped off it's pride"_

_"What the hell are you trying to do?!"_

_"Something that will torture you your whole life. Something that won't let a weakling like you go on" One of the guys whispered into his ear with malice._

_Ichigo ignored it. He had by now guessed what they were going to do._

_But he was sure he wasn't go let it hap-_

_Ichigo then started to feel weak._ _His vision was blurring and even keeping his eyes open was a hard task. But he didn't let it show. His rush of adrenaline was helping too._

_He guessed__ that the drug had started taking it's effect just how the man had said._

_"You guys are the ones that are dishonouring the Shiba clan!"_

_"Us? The very reason we left was the same reason you are calling out. And we had to leave everything behind just so we don't get attacked by other clan assassins!"_

_Assassins?_

_"Other clan . . . assassins?"_

_The guy snorted at his question._

_"And you call yourself a clan member. Every clan has a group of assassins that handle the dirty business. We happen to be some of those members"_

_Ichigo now understood how much trouble he actually had fallen into. He knew that Shiba clan fighters were something __that shouldn't be messed with._

_"Realising that you are in trouble? So typical of an inexperienced Shiba brat"Ichigo growled but didn't say a word_ _as he knew that he had zero to no experience with clan politics._

_"And we are going to make you realise why we were called assassins"_

_Ichigo realising what the guy was about to do, struggled as if his life depended on it. Kicking and punching everything that came into his already blurred vision._

_"What makes you think that I would let yo-"_

_But he felt his mouth weaken when he felt a certain person's spiritual pressure drop._

_Ichigo stopped fighting back as he slowly looked up, the horror in his eyes was clear._

_The man covered in black was now covered in red instead. His hand completely drenched as he pushed down the kunai more._

_More into Nel's throat._

_He couldn't move. He couldn't argue back._

_He just laid there as slowly the men got off him, knowing about the damage they had caused._

_The silent patch of forest was filled with sounds of crunching. Crunching of bones and flesh._

_Even with the freedom of movement, Ichigo just stayed there as he felt Nel's spiritual pressure pulse once more before it stopped completely._

_"I hope you have learned your lesson **Kurosaki **Ichigo" The man said and everyone was gone, leaving Ichigo alone on the ground._

_Shiro growled in his inner world. If Ichigo hadn't been in his true shikai form then Shiro could have taken over and turned each and every person to ashes. But being in a balanced state now he was not able to cause an imbalance._

_After snapping out of his daze, Ichigo slowly crawled towards Nel's body as he whispered calming words into her ears and picked up her small fram. He held her close to him, just how he used to do when Yuzu and Karin used to cry at night when they were babies._

_But this time he had to be extra careful._

_So that the rest of her neck wouldn't fall off._

_He didn't deserve to be a brother. He didn't deserve anything._

_He had failed again._

_Yet he didn't cry._

_He had promised not to cry so he didn't._

_Not trying to draw in more attention to him, thinking that the assassins were still lurking around, Ichigo sat there all night._

_Nel in his arms, dead._

**_-End Flashback-_**

Ichigo stopped on his way as the memory of Nel's tattered body rushed in again.

He rested his hands on his knees as sweat rolled down his forehead.

'I didn't need to remember that. Not now'

Ichigo laid down on the sand, trying to get the image out of his mind.

Deciding to take a five minute break, Ichigo remained there for what felt like a eternity.

When he was about to get up he felt pain shoot up from his chest. He fell on the sand dune with a yelp as he noticed something black popping out.

Just when he thought the pain had passed he was hit with another similar feeling. This time more extreme.

Ichigo yelled as this time the pain didn't stop.

* * *

"This emergency meeting has been placed so that I can announce new modifications to the rescue mission" Yamamoto's voice boomed through the meeting room.

Shunsui felt Yamamoto glance at him sternly so he stepped forward.

"Me along with my lieutenant, Nanao Ise are going to join the rescue mission and try to retrieve the boy back personally"

There were many shocked faces but most knew that this was going to happen at some point.

After nodding approvingly Yamamoto asked,

"Are there any objections?"

Recieving no response Yamamoto tapped his crane on the ground and said,

"The decision has been made then! This meeting is dismissed!"

* * *

"Damn it!" Ichigo said as he tightly squeezed the black cloth that had formed around his chest with his hands.

**"Be calm Ichigo. This will pass" **Zangetsu's voice whispered.

"But why now?!" Ichigo gritted out as he tried to get hold of the sand in pain.

**_"We should have been careful king. When your memories came back, it was obvious that your old clothes were going to return in some time" _**Shiro said.

**"And by knowing that it had hurt alot while the seal had appeared, it should have been obvious that the same condition would apply for when the rest would appear"** Zangetsu said.

Ichigo's body was now half covered in his hospital gown while the other half was covered in his black shinigami attire. The process was surprisingly fast.

"How long will this go on?" Ichigo asked, now being a bit accounted with the pain.

**"It will most likely be over in a few minutes. But only your shihakusho has shown up. You will feel like this again after a while when your Hayori shows up, the one which you tie around your waist. Then you will feel alright for some more time. Then your b-"**

"So my batch and my white guard will show up randomly and it will hurt like I was thrown in lava? Just what I needed" Ichigo said as he got up, now wearing his shihakusho.

He looked at the hospital gown that laid in the sand and his eyebrow twitched.

"Hadō 33: Sōkatsui"

The hospital gown now laid on the sand, turned to ashes.

**_"So much for being calm" _**Shiro mused.

"Shut up will ya" Ichigo muttered as he took a second to move around in his shihakusho until he darted off again.

Then he eyes his zanpaktō. One on his back while the other on his waist

"At least I have a place to keep them now. How did the shihakusho get to my current kiddy size anyways? My zanpaktō stayed the same" Ichigo thought curiously as he gradually increased his speed.

* * *

"When are we going to leave captain?"

Shunsui looked up from his paperwork and said,

"We will be leaving in an hour. These papers contain some important information on Hueco Mundo that I need to keep tabs on"

Nanao nodded in understanding as she looked back at the window.

Today had been different.

Instead of her yelling at Shunsui to do his paperwork, he himself had started doing it so they could leave early.

And surprisingly she was the one slacking off by hanging around the couch all day, watching her captain only get up for food.

For someone who had been around them usually, he or she would suggest putting this new found behaviour in the magazine.

"I am done Nanao chan"

Nanao just nodded as she picked up her small brown backpack and stood up.

Shunsui eyed the bag and Nanao noticing this said,

"It has medical supplies. Just in case he is-"

"I understand"

Nanao sent a grateful smile towards her captain as they walked towards the balcony.

And without another word, both of them flashstepped towards the squad 12 barracks where Mayuri was going to open an Garganta.

* * *

Ichigo stared at the big grey castle known as Las Noches in front of him as he vaguely remembered his old self just Getsuga Tenshoing his ass in.

'Obviously not going to do that again'

He looked at one of the towers that emerged from the castle.

Ichigo clearly memorized the layout of the castle as he and Lisa has done a search around this area after the war had started.

The arrancar being on their side didn't argue back.

Aiwach had taken into living in the shadow dimension of the Quincy.

The man had figured that the arrancar weren't going to support him anymore now that the shinigami were willing to save them and living in the soul palace would just be headache as the shinigami would keep attacking him.

So due to these reasons, Aiwach had abandoned Las Noches, leaving Halibel as it's ruler, who Ichigo had himself released from her prison.

Ichigo scoffed a bit, remembering Aiwach telling Yamamoto that he was strong enough to not need the arrancar anymore.

And he was right.

Suddenly he heard a shuffle from behind him and in a mater of seconds Ichigo had the thing by it's neck.

He only realised what it was when he heard a small whine.

He looked down to find a coffee cream coloured puppy with a small skull like structure around the right side of it's head.

"Aren't you a weird looking one?" Ichigo asked as if the dog would reply.

When the puppy whined again Ichigo realised that he had held the puppy in a death grip at it's neck.

"Ah sorry!" Ichigo said as he quickly removed his hand while the puppy rolled over onto it's stomach and gagged without having anything to throw up.

Ichigo looked silently as the puppy then got up and shook his body to get the sand off it's fur.

"What are you doing out here alone?"

The puppy sat down and looked at Ichigo curiously as it tilted it's head while Ichigo continued to ask him questions.

"What? Orange is a new sight for you?"

The puppy did nothing but kept staring and Ichigo sighed.

"How are you even surviving out here? And that too all alone?"

The puppy still said nothing as it walked over to Ichigo and licked his fist. It was now that Ichigo realised just how small the puppy actually was. His fist was half the puppy's full length.

'Must have died right after she was born, that's why she is so smal- How is she really surviving out here?'

Then Ichigo remembered something Uryu had told him when they had first entered Hueco Mundo.

_'These small hollows survive on the dense reishi around them. They don't need bigger sources like a soul. That's why you usually don't see any animal hollows in world of the living'_ Uryu had said.

Ichigo pulled his hand away from the dog as he felt irritated by it's licking.

The puppy's ears fell as he did so.

Ichigo gave up and said,

"Fine, lick them all you want"

The puppy seemed to wag it's tail and continue licking.

'Seriously what was soul king thinking when he invented dogs? Stupid animal with low IQ but cuteness that couldn't be denied?'

Ichigo unconsciously increased his spiritual pressure a bit to try and sense the number of half arrancars currently inside.

But before Ichigo could sense anything, the sudden increase in pressure led to the dog having more than enough reishi poured into it's body.

Proof? The puppy kept running around Ichigo in circles for the next 15 minutes without getting tired.

"What the hell?"

**"He probably got more fed that he had in days with your spiritual pressure"**

"It's that easy to feed a dog's soul?"

**_"I mean king, it's just a dog?"_**

Ichigo suddenly smirked inwardly as he had a bright idea.

The puppy stopped as she looked up curiously at Ichigo's expression.

**_-Flashback-_**

_Isshin had been working on a patient who had a bike accident nearby._

_With no hospitals that would be willing to handle an on sight work at 3:00 AM, Isshin's emergency clinic had come in handy._

_11 year old Ichigo stood behind Isshin in his blue pajamas as he held a medical tray for Isshin._

_Karin__ and Yuzu were still too young to help around at the clinic so he used to be the one that had to help around, even at midnight._

_"Ichigo, pass me the surgical thread"__Ichigo yawned and looked at the tray and found it didn't have any surgical thread._

_"I will go check at the storage"_

_"Yeah just hurry" Isshin said as he held some gauze over the injured guy's arm._

_Ichigo__ flicked on the storage room's light and looked around until he huffed in annoyance and got out._

_"There isn't any Oyaji"_

_Isshin grit his teeth as the man's wound had started to bleed more heavily._

_"Ichigo, there is my wallet on the dining table. Take it and go to the medical store that's near the tea shop down the road. Be quick and take my red jacket with you" Isshin ordered as he looked at the tray Ichigo had left at the bed's end and tried to find something that would stop the bleeding._

_He__ tried to remember how they could have ran out of something so crucial._

_Then__ the memory of Yuzu using some thread to 'fix' all her plush toys came into Isshin's mind as he shook his head._

_Ichigo__ ran past Isshin on his way towards the clinic door which was a faster way out._

_"Did you take the jacket idiot?! It's cold outside!" Isshin yelled out in the last second and came Ichigo's hasty reply,__"Yeah I did!"_

_Ichigo ran to the store until he was stopped mid run when he heard a thump from a garbage can._

_Ichigo__ looked back at the bottom of the street light where there were many garbage cans lying around._

_Deciding__ that it was just his imagination, Ichigo turned on his heel to run again but this time loud metal clanking stopped him._

_He__ spun around and saw that one of the garbage cans had fallen over and some of the trash had fallen out._

_"Geez, people don't know how to put in their trash properly" Ichigo said as he walked over and picked up the metal can that had fallen out and threw it inside._

_He__ heard a loud and painful squeal as he did that._

_Without__ thinking twice, Ichigo put his hands inside the trash can and started rummaging through it.__The smell almost made him throw up but it was worth it as he picked out a small black and brown puppy that was covered in dirt._

_The__ puppy looked at Ichigo slowly as if it was in pain._ _Ichigo__ set it down carefully as if he wanted to test something out.__The dog walked a few steps shakily before her left hind leg contracted under her own weight and before it could fall, Ichigo picked it up again.__This time he was careful while holding her as he knew where she was hurt._

_He__ zipped down Isshin's big jacket and settled the puppy in before he started running towards the medical store again._

_"Aunty, can you please give me some surgical thread?!" Ichigo asked as he tried to catch his breath._

_The__ old woman dressed in the light blue night gown smiled as she got up and set down her news paper in search for the asked item._

_"Well I can Ichigo. But why did Isshin send you out all alone? And that too in the middle of the night?" The old woman asked as worry laced her voice._

_Ichigo__ smiled at the lady. She was one of the few shop keepers that didn't give him hell for his hair colour. Some had even kicked him out so she was a nice change of pace._

_"Well Oyaji needed some surgical thread for a medical emergency. But we ran out at the last second so he had no choice but to send me"__The woman nodded as she walked out from between the shelves and packed two packs of surgical thread and put in a plastic bag._

_Ichigo__ took out the wallet from his pocket, not needing to ask the price as he already knew it._ _He__ quickly handed her the money as she made a receipt._

_While__ the bill was printing she had a good look at Ichigo._

_"Ichigo, child are you okay? I can give you some medicine if you want?" The woman asked._

_Ichigo__ looked at her curiously as he thought why she would ask that but then his eyes went to the direction the lady was looking._

_His__ stomach._

_He__ had been unconsciously holding his stomach so that the puppy won't fall out. Isshin's jacket being big for Ichigo made it easy to hide the puppy._

_"No I am fine aunty. Just a normal stomach ache" Ichigo lied as he scratched the back of his head with one hand but made sure to hold one around his stomach to keep the puppy safe._

_The__ woman eyed Ichigo's nervous smile before she went back in and put something beside the plastic bag._

_Ichigo__ stepped forward and saw what she had placed and smiled brightly._

_"I don't know if it's a dog or a cat but these treats work for both. You don't need to pay for them. It's enough to see you smile when all you do is scowl all the time" The lady said as she put the bill, change and the treats into the plastic bag as well._

_Ichigo__ just scowled more at her comment but took the bag anyways_ _before muttering a small thanks._

_He__ had to stop running a few times midway as it was hard to hold the puppy only with one hand around it. His other was holding the bag._

_Ichigo__ then sighed as he removed his jacket and covered the puppy with it. Then he held the bundle of jacket in one hand and the bag in the other._

_The__ run back to his house was nothing but cold but to Ichigo it was worth it._

_He__ entered through the front door, knowing that Isshin would spot the dog and would probably scold him for not wearing his jacket out in -2 degrees._

_He__ quickly ran upstairs and set the dog still wrapped in the jacket on his bed and covered it further with some sheets._

_He__ then quickly opened the packet of treats and set some of it in front of the dog and practically shunpoed down to the clinic._

_Even though it just had been 20 minutes, Ichigo still thought that Isshin would realise something was wrong.__When he came inside he was glad to find Isshin very busy. Meaning that he had obviously not tracked the time._

_"Oyaji! Here, take this." Ichigo said as he handed Isshin the thread and went to throw the bag into the trashcan._

_After__ 30 minutes of more hectic treatment and Isshin yelling at Ichigo and Ichigo yelling back, They were finally able to rest._

_"I hope he is conscious enough in the morning to tell us where he lives" Isshin said as sat at the dining table and Ichigo handed him a glass of water and sat down himself._

_Isshin__ knew that he won't be able to sleep now so he decided to stay awake.__While Isshin was lost in his own thoughts Ichigo was having a crisis of his own._

_Since__ the work was over and the adrenaline in his body had ran out he had realised how tired he actually felt. Too tired._

_Ichigo was having trouble keeping his eyes open. Even blinking felt like a job too much._

_He tried to go through all that he had done in the whole night but nothing came to view that would tire him out to this extent._

_'Geez, Why am I so tired? All I did was help Oyaji and ran outside for 20 minutes. Wait, ran outside . . . in cold . . . without a sweater'_

_Ichigo hit his head on the table as he realised he was getting sick. And of course his dad had to be a doctor._

_He__ noticed the silence and looked up to see Isshin staring at him strangely._

_"What's wrong Ichigo? Girl problems are haunting you-" Before Isshin could have completed that sentence Ichigo threw a nearby vase at the man's face._

_Isshin__ just got up and took a fighting stance._

_"Yes my boy! It has been so long since we had a fight! Let's see how my son has matured!"_

_Ichigo was too tired to even argue back. All he did was remove Isshin's wallet from his pocket and set it on the table._

_"I am going back to sleep. Do whatever you want" Ichigo said as he waved Ishhin off._

_Sounds__ of Isshin fake crying near Masaki's poster and yelling how 'rude' their son was could be heard and Ichigo just ignored it and walked into his room._

_He__ didn't even bother to switch on the lights as he walked over to his bed._

_"I will just sleep it off. What can a cold do?" He whispered to himself._

_He__ then saw the puppy sleeping peacefully and smiled lightly._

_"Your brown spots are same colour as mom's hair" Ichigo said as he shifted the puppy so there was space for him to sleep__ too, waking the puppy up in the process._

_He__ then stared out the window as the puppy looked at him intently while he_ _said_,

_"You are a girl right? How about I name you Masa?"_

_Masa let out a small bark and Ichigo knew that she was content with her name._

_"Glad . . . you liked . . . it" Ichigo said as he drifted off to sleep_ _with a smile._

_He__ didn't know how long he was asleep. In between he had heard some chattering but didn't think of it much and went back to sleep assuming it was the sparrows outside._

_The__ next time he woke up he saw a face lingering in front of him.__It took a while for him to focus his vision and notice it was Yuzu._

_Thinking__ she wanted something in the middle of the night as usual, he got up slowly. Feeling his stiff muscles contradicting his actions, he knew he was still sick._

_"What do you want Yuzu?" Ichigo asked as he lied back down._

_"Nothing nii chan. It was just my turn to watch over you" Yuzu said as she held out a glass of water._

_"Watch over me? What do you mean?"_ _Ichigo said as he shook his head at the glass of water, not feeling thirsty._

_Yuzu pouted which looked like a failed attempt at scowling and said,__"Nii Chan has been sick the whole day! He didn't even go to school"_

_Ichigo's hand automatically searched around his bed for Masa._

_His__ eyes widened as he got up with as much strength as he could muster and walked out the door as he ignored Yuzu's pleas to stay in bed._ _He__ walked down the stairs, almost stumbling on his way and made it to Isshin's office._

_Isshin__ looked up when he heard the door slam open and opened his mouth to say something._

_"Don't. Don't say a thing. Just tell me where is Masa" Ichigo said as he tried to be as patient as he could._

_"Ichigo-"_

_"Please dad, Just. tell. me. where. is. Masa."_

_"You know I had to Ichi-"_

_"Don't fuck with me! Just tell me where she is!"_

_Isshin had a stern look on his face as he heard Ichigo curse._

_"I don't want you to talk like that to me, ever!"__Ichigo flinched under Isshin's voice but nonetheless continued speaking as he looked down shamefully._

_He__ knew that when Isshin yelled, he should just shut up as the man yelled only when it was necessary._

_But__ he had to speak. He did not want to let Masa go. He can't lose her too._

_"Please dad. Wherever she is, can't you bring her back?"_

_"Ichigo, how can you even talk after I yelled at you!"_

_"Dad please! I am asking for something just this once! I have never asked for anything!"_

_"No Ichigo!"_

_"Dad if it's a lot of work then i will bring her back myself but-"_

_"Kurosaki Ichigo. I want you to stop talking this instant."_

_Ichigo's anger was gone in a flash as he heard his full name. But it was replaced with something worse._

_"What did you do to her? She was all alone on the street . . . " Ichigo asked shakily__ as his voice trembled in pain._

_Ichigo__ currently had the same face he had for three months when he had lost Masaki. Isshin had swore that he would do anything in his power to never see it again._

_Yet here he was, seeing himself being the reason for the same._

_Isshin__ had now understood why Ichigo kept calling the dog Masa. It was Masa as in Masaki._

_Isshin__ regretted his decision of yelling as he said,_

_"I am sorry Ichigo but I gave her to a pet center"_

_Ichigo wanted to argue and cry like the kid he was but he had promised not to do that in front of his sisters. He needed to be strong for them. He just stood there as the whole room was surrounded in silence._

_Karin__ and Yuzu stood behind Ichigo as they somewhat glared at their father. They knew the reasons Isshin had were correct but this was the first time their brother had really wanted something but he was turned down. Brutally._

_"Ichigo i-"_

_"It's alright Oyaji. We couldn't have kept her in the house anyways. We would all be too busy to take care of her. She will have some other . . . but better owner who would adopt her" Ichigo shrugged but his expression said something else._

_Isshin__ remembered how the dog had loudly whined until they had reached the pet center. It was obvious Masa didn't want to be separated from Ichigo as well._

_But__ there was just no way they could have kept Masa._

_Before__ anything else could have been said Ichigo fainted because of overexerting himself while he was still sick._

**_-End Flashback-_**

**_"You hadn't talked to him for a month since then king" _**Shiro mused.

"How do you even know that?"

**"Even though you didn't know we were inside of you, we did." **

**_"So what are you planning king?"_**

Ichigo looked at the puppy that was still roaming around him and said,

"I am obviously going to take her. Let soul society object my decision. Even if they put me in prison, then they will have to let me keep her with me and that's the end of it"

The zanpaktō knew this was a reckless decision. It was going yo be hard to take a hollow back to soul society with Ichigo's status already being marked as a potential threat. But this was the first time Ichigo was doing something for himself instead of doing it for others.

So they were going to make damn sure of it that the puppy stayed with him.

**"What are you going to name it Ichigo?"**

Shiro snorted and said,

**_"Do you even need to ask?"_**

Zangetsu sighed and said,

**"Masa it is then"**

But Ichigo was thinking differently.

"I am not going to name her based off a bad experience" Ichigo said.

He looked at the puppy again before he said,

"Nozomi"

**"Hope? That's a good name Ichigo"**

**_"That's why he kept it you old idiot"_**

Ichigo silenced out the rest of the arguement between his zanpaktō spirits and looked at Nozomi.

"Well I would not be able to take you inside. So how about I put you inside a sealed box. Big enough for you to walk a few steps. With breathable air of course?"

Nozomi just barked and wagged her tail.

"Box it is"

Ichigo stood up as he went through a kidō incantation that Hacchi had thought him just in case he wanted to secure the Rukongai citizens while he fought.

"Seal!" Ichigo said as the dog was surrounded by a big yellow box.

"It would be invisible to anyone else besides me. I will be back to take you" Ichigo said as he picked up the box slowly and set it close to the wall.

**_"King, we have wasted too much time"_**

He didn't need to be reminded of that. He already knew. He also knew alot of time would be needed for what he had planned to do.

"Yeah let's go" Ichigo ran a hand through his hair before closing his eyes. Trying to calm himself.

**"It would be okay Ichigo"** Zangetsu assured.

**_"Yeah king. You have already done it many times, what's one more going to do?" _**Suprisingly even Shiro was supporting him.

But nonetheless Ichigo didn't argue cause he needed all the support he could get.

Ichigo let his hands travel to his sword as his thumb slid it out a bit.

He took a deep breath in as he slowly opened his eyes.

He was glad he didn't have a mirror right now cause he hated how his eyes looked when he opened them while he used _it._

His narrowed eyes right now were cold and devoid of any emotions.

He had used the _switch_.

The _switch _of emotions as he called it was something that Yourichi taught him along with another disgusting way of combat.

When he _switched_, he would let go of anything like pain, sympathy, happiness, remorse or guilt.

The _switch_ made him nothing more than a killing machine.

And the disgusting style of combat that Yourichi had thought him along with the method to switch off emotions was,

**_Assassination._**

* * *

**MagneticDucky: Glad to know that my writings are so important to someone! UwU**

**Zeynel: I know right! I think Ichigo is going to take it slow with meeting everyone but on the offside he doesn't have that much time to spare! Poor Ichigo :(**

**Yeah about him going to Hueco Mundo. You must have realised what he was going to do.**

**BUT**** don't worry, he ain't gonna kill everyone. He actually has a plan and he thinks it is better to fight the arrancar when they haven't developed fully. It would be too troublesome to fight them when they are fully powered!**

**Imagine fighting Ulquiorra all over again with his double resurrection and shit!**

**BioHazard82: Than you so so so much!**

**777torn777: I am actually not planning to ship Ichigo and Nel as you can see Nel sees him as his big brother. And about the turmoil in his inner world, it can be fixed but not without Ichigo's own consent! So there is that so we don't know where the chapter is going actually!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**Lol do you guys like the new cover for this story?**

**P.s. I don't own it!**

* * *

**A Normal Day In World Of The Living**

Masaki looked up from her book as she heard the doorbell ring. With a quick glance at the clock she got up from the couch and headed for the door.

Just as she opened the door a small figure ran towards her.

"I am home!" Ichigo yelled happily as he gave his mom's leg a quick hug before rushing to his room to put his bag back.

She heard what sounded like closing of an umbrella and saw Orihime rest her umbrella against the wall and remove her shoes.

Masaki just smiled as she noticed that Orihime was wearing the pink dress that she had gifted her on her birthday a few days ago. The girl rarely had enough courage to say no to anything.

"Orihime, it's nice to see you again dear. Where is Uryu, you three usually roam around together?" Masaki asked as she let the girl in.

"Uryu got hurt today while we were having a cooking class. Apparently I am not much of a cook" Orihime said guiltily as she gave a nervous smile.

Orihime waited until she heard Ichigo's bedroom door close and then completely walked in.

It didn't take Masaki too long to understand that something was up but she waited for the girl to say what it was herself. Masaki wasn't the one for pushing.

"I am assuming your cooking has something to do with Uryu getting hurt" Masaki said as she lightly chuckled and took Orihime's bag from her.

"Yeah kind of"

Orihime continued to look around the house as if she was visiting it the first time.

"Well that's okay. You can play with Ichigo and I will bring you guys some snacks" Masaki said as she left Orihime's bag on the counter.

Orihime still didn't say anything.

'Okay, so maybe a bit of pushing is required' Masaki thought.

"And I am happy to see that you are wearing that pink frock I gave you! I told you it would suit you. A woman's intuition is never wrong Orihime"

Orihime nodded in appreciation but never made another move.

With a small sigh Masaki started heading for the kitchen. If the girl had to say something then she would anyways.

But she was stopped as she felt a tug at her skirt. Masaki looked down to see Orihime with a worrisome expression on her face.

'Oh so she finally decided to say something'

"What's wrong dear?"

Orihime was hesitant for a while before Masaki persisted.

"You know that you can tell me anything right?"

Orihime seemed to be having a internal debate as to what she was going to say would be appropriate or not.

Masaki was going to persuade her again but suddenly Orihime's expression took serious turn as she looked at Masaki and said,

"It's about Ichigo"

Masaki wasn't surprised.

She knew what that look meant before Inoue had even said anything but what suprised her more was the fact that Orihime looked more scared than worried.

So she reached the only conclusion that the clues led her to.

"Has my son done anything to you? Has he touched you in a way you don't like? If yes then-"

"No Masaki San! Goodness no! Ichigo would never do something like that!" Orihime exclaimed.

Masaki visibly relaxed. She didn't know what she would do if her son had turned out anything near to a pervert.

So she asked,

"Then what is it?"

"Can you do something for me today? It's the only reason that I have actually visited or else I would have just visited with Uryu tomorrow"

Masaki thought for a moment before saying,

"Of course. What would you like me to do?"

Orihime visibly flinch as if she was second guessing what she was going to say but she knew she had to do it. For Ichigo's sake.

"Can you try to attack or trick Ichigo to harm him?"

'What?'

"What?"

Orihime was quick to notice Masaki's discomfort and said,

"Trust me, I have a good reason!"

"B-But why? How-"

"You might think differently Masaki san but I have a reason. I think it would be wise to bring Isshin san into this too"

Before Masaki could say anything Isshin walked up to them,

"Get me into what? Are we pranking someone?"

Isshin was smiling until he saw the look on Masaki's face and the determination in Orihime's eyes.

He looked back at Masaki with a serious facade and asked,

"What's going on?"

"Well . . ."

Masaki explained the whole ordeal to Isshin and he seemed to get more shocked as time went by.

"Inoue, you do know that you are telling us to attack our son right?"

Orihime lowered her gaze as she felt Isshin glare at her but she knew something was wrong and she was determined enough to find it.

"I am not trying to suggest you kill him or even attack in a way Ichigo would know you are attacking. Just try using tricks like . . . poisoning his food or even making him slip and hit something or just something small"

Isshin and Masaki's eyes widened as Orihime listed out these things casually but they were stunned when she said her next words,

"It's not like it's going to work on him"

Orihime looked up at both the adults with confidence and Isshin now narrowed his eyes.

Confidence was something this girl usually lacked. Alot.

If what she was saying was coming from a reasonable reasons then he was ready to find out why.

"Okay"

Masaki looked at Isshin and was about to ask him why the hell he would agree to something like that but then Ichigo walked into the room.

He had taken a bath and was currently drying his hair and looking at the scene with a confused look.

"What are you guys so serious for?" Ichigo asked and raised an eyebrow.

Orihime smiled brightly as she walked over to him and said,

"It's nothing! Masaki san was giving us snacks made from mushrooms but i forgot to tell her that I was allergic to mushrooms so she is arranging something else. Let's go play cards with Isshin san! He agreed to play with us!"

"Right?" Orihime asked as she looked at Isshin knowingly.

"Yes son! Today I will beat you as usual but at least you will start to get better!" Isshin said without missing a heartbeat and gave a bright smile along with a thumbs up.

(Hey guys, don't you think that Isshin is kinda like Gai of Bleach?? Except for all the 'youthfullness' he seems so similar. Comment please lol I wanna know)

"You are on dad!" Ichigo said as he pulled Orihime and Isshin with him to his room upstairs.

Masaki just shook her head fondly before she looked at the food that she was about to give.

Then she looked at the cabinet that had all the medical supplies that were to be used for the house.

'A light poison huh?' she thought

* * *

Ichigo jumped from pillar to pillar that led to the main grounds of Las Noches. His feet made no sound as they kept jumping over mechanically but with up most precision.

He was moving so silently that even Zangetsu was feeling jittery.

It was too quite.

**_"Las Noches feels as cold as ever" _**Zangetsu started as he felt nostalgia creep into him.

Shiro wanted to argue on how the hell the old man felt nostalgic about a place like this when he abruptly stopped.

He turned around in his inner world to look at Zangetsu who nodded in response.

**"So ya sense it too?" **Shiro still confirmed and Zangetsu did nothing but nodded again.

**"I sense something king"** Shiro finally informed.

Ichigo paused when he spotted his first preys.

Aisslinger Wernarr and Demoura Zodd.

The very first arrancar Ichigo, Uryu and Chad had fought when they had entered Hueco Mundo.

**_"So in the past they used to be more than gate guards if they are roaming around in the main building"_ **Zangetsu said.

His tone held a questioning ring to it and he expected Ichigo to answer it. Hoping that after a few months of not using_ switch_ Ichigo had actually rusted in performing it.

His assumption although being wrong as they received no response from Ichigo.

**"Why**** are you even trying old man? Ya know he ain't gonna respond"** Shiro mumbled and rolled his eyes.

Zangetsu said nothing. He knew how this technique was going to affect Ichigo after he had snapped out of it. It was actually a difficult task to make him snap out of it but it wasn't impossible. But what happens after leaves him mental agony for some time. Worse if he holds the _switch_ for too long.

And when he used _switch_ it was never a good sight.

In a second Ichigo flashstepped behind Aisslinger and cut off both of his legs making the arrancar fall down and scream in pain. He remembered Aisslinger being faster than Demoura so the best course of action was making the arrancar let go of it's legs.

The screams fell deaf on Ichigo's ears as he calmly looked at Demoura.

Demoura raised his large arms to crush Ichigo but Ichigo stared with mocking disgust as the arms seemed to be coming down in slow motion.

"Hadō 33: Sōkatsui" The explosive attack shot out of his palm and burned Demoura's hands to the point that some skin had melted and was falling off.

The smell of melted skin was enough to make anyone throw up or even faint if they are light headed enough.

But he was habitual to it. Not only this but worse than this.

Ichigo then removed his zanpaktō again and without waisting any time he slashed Demoura's hands off completely.

For some reason the arrancar was still alive enough to scream just like his comrade had.

Ichigo tilted his head in confusion.

"I will let you scream around with your friend until you want. You are going to die in 2 minutes" Ichigo silently said as he jumped up and stood on the pillar again.

When it was confirmed that both of them were dead he started jumping again, flicking his small sword so that the blood would not stain it.

He abruptly paused on his way as he felt an all too familiar spiritual pressure.

Yammy Llargo.

**_"We cannot let him get angry Ichigo. Anger is his power. He is weak now as you can see. No messing around with double attacks like last one. Kill on sight"_ **Zangetsu muttered.

Even though it may have seemed like Ichigo wasn't listening, Ichigo had agreed with his zanpaktō.

Yammy was too dangerous to be left alive in any way. Even a bit of strength and the monster would double up in size.

Ichigo crouched to his knee and he held his zanpaktō perpendicular to his body.

"Hadō 78 . . . " Ichigo said as Zangetsu glowed yellow but he hadn't called out the attack incantation yet.

Ichigo then removed Shiro from his back and said,

"Getsuga . . . "

Yammy turned his head as he thought he might have heard something.

Realising that he had been caught Ichigo wasted no time to give the beast a chance to even know what had occurred.

Ichigo flashstepped in front of Yammy's view before he could guess that something was up and said,

"Zangerin"

The Hadō attack incantation flashed out a yellow coloured circular Hadō that had been stored in Zangetsu and was shot into Yammy's eyes which lead to them bursting.

"Tensho!" Ichigo completed as his Getsuga Tensho halved Yamma's body leaving no chance of survival or attack.

Ichigo jumped up onto the pillar again as he saw Yammy bleed to the point that he might have just died of blood loss instead of that severe wound.

**"They have put these pillars high and up in the shadows so that someone manages to kill them. Literally they are the most convenient thing an assassin can ask for" **Shiro said as he eyed the pillars ahead through Ichigo's vision.

On his way a shock of blonde hair and caught his eyes and Ichigo stopped. He noticed that the man was none other than Yylfordt Granz.

**"He was the dude that had wrecked pineapple head when they had fought. He had his speed back them but now . . . "** Shiro trailed off with a vicious smile.

**_"This is the past hence he is already slow. Plus he is just half formed. Kill him." _**Zangetsu said with no remorse.

Ichigo took out Shiro from his back again and flashstepped in front of the blonde. The blonde even though was fast enough to react, still managed to get one of his hands cut off.

"Why you- Who are you?!"

Yylfordt yelled as he tried to stop the bleeding in his arm. He gasped for air as his other hand cradled the bleeding wound.

Ichigo said nothing as he raised Shiro up in the sky.

Yylfordt glared at him but removed his own zanpaktō nonetheless, leaving the wound open. But it was quite a difficult task to use the wrong hand on his zanpaktō while the real one was bleeding.

"Who the fuck are you kid?!" Yylfordt growled out.

"Getsuga Tensho!" Ichigo said the attack zoomed towards Yylfordt.

Yylfordt scoffed as he sidestepped and got ready to release his own attack when he felt something hot touch his back.

He looked behind to see Ichigo's bright red fingertip connected with his back.

"No this can't be! When did you- How can you even perform-"

"Cero."

The bright red cero was shot at point blank range and it splattered Yylfordt's lungs on the ground. Yylfordt's eyes slowly rolled back into his skull and his fingertips stopped moving after a minute.

Ichigo started at the mess for a second before shrugging and jumping back up.

He had jumped up in time because just after a second he had, the arrancar guards had shown up to take care of the body. Or of what that was left of it.

The leader bent down to take a look at the kill and trying to find any clues. All he could sense was the reiatsu of a cero. That meant it wasn't a shinigami that had killed them all.

**"This will misdirect them, nice" **Shiro said.

**_"Fool, you should be glad that none of them tried to use pesquisa. If they had then they might have sensed us standing right above them_****_" _**Zangetsu said, annoyed.

**"Old idiot. If they try to, then we can repress king's shinigami reiatsu and let my side's reiatsu flare up a bit. Their pesquisa can't detect hollow reiatsu" **Shiro mummered.

Zangetsu and Shiro had a glaring contest for a few seconds before Zangetsu sighed and said,

**_"Fine, I agree with you"_**

**"The heavens have answered my call! Old man is agreeing with me!" **Shiro said as he held up his arms dramatically.

Turning their attention back on the outside world they noticed the leader of the squad grimace at the brutal method of killing before he said,

"This is the third kill now. Inform the whole Las Noches quarters that there has been infiltration. Nobody will roam around alone. Form pairs. Only the fully formed arrancar are allowed to roam around alone"

The guards said "Yes lord" and sonidoed away while one remained with the leader as per the leader's own order.

**"At some point we will have to leave this straight route and make a turn king. We can't just go straight until we reach the end of this path!"** Shiro said.

**_"And they aren't moving from this position Ichigo. How are you planning to get past these two?"_** Zangetsu asked.

Ichigo's only response was removal of his shorter sword, Zangetsu, while he held the longer one in the other hand.

**"Oh, I guess killing could work too" **Shiro said and shrugged innocently.

Ichigo held both the zanpaktō against each other and crouched to aim his slash.

Then he thrusted his legs to shoot his body towards the two of them. Even though they sensed an attack coming they weren't fast enough to deflect it.

Ichigo slashed their bodies in half but just to make sure they were dead he launched a kidō as well.

"Hadō 31: Shakkahō" Their body parts were blasted around the room in not so silent way.

Ichigo jumped over the 'mess' and started walking. He then eyed a turn that didn't have pillars in it's path.

Ichigo looked at his zanpaktō before he turned them back to their normal states but didn't sheath them. Walking casually on the route.

**"So ya decided to fuck stealth just cause people know that you are here?" **

**_"If we can't win by tricking them then at least we can win by making them think they are messing with the wrong person"_** Zangetsu said.

**"Ya do know that this trick wasn't so useful during war?" **Shiro said sarcastically.

**_"But are we in war right now?" _**Zangetsu said.

Shiro nodded in understanding as he walked over to sit on the edge of a building in the inner world. Then he sensed something and looked up to the sky sharply.

Seeing him Zangetsu asked through their personal link,

**_"What's wrong?"_**

Shiro obviously didn't wait for him to reply and said,

**"Hey, aren't these the two bitches that had fucked with Orihime when Aizen had kidnapped her?" **

Zangetsu ran a hand over his face as he felt Ichigo flashstep towards the said direction.

**_"You didn't need to do that" _**Zangetsu said in the inner world's personal link so Ichigo can't hear what they are talking about.

**"Well we would have to kill them sooner or later so why not? Besides, I hated those two. I remember Grimmjow telling king how he had beat those two up!" **Shiro said as he laughed and fell over with a yelp.

Zangetsu just shook his head and focused on the outside world again as he felt Ichigo nearing the targets.

Loly Aivirrne and Menoly Mallia.

They were walking casually as Loly caressed her black pigtails while Menoly joked about something.

Somehow their outfits were different. They both wore white shorts instead of their normal skirt and pants.

**"They seem decent somehow" **Shiro mummered as he climbed back on the building.

**_"Everyone is decent under fear. They were weakest when they were fully developed. What makes you think they aren't the weakest now?"_**

**"Good point"**

"And then Szayel was like, "Who painted hearts all over my room?!" and I was like "It was Aizen sama's order". Obviously it was me but why would I say that? At first he obviously didn't believe me but then at the end he was begging for me to not tell Aizen! That was so-"

Ichigo muted out the rest of the conversation between the two as he didn't think it would have any important information.

He stepped ahead but this time allowing his foot to make some noise so as to make his presence felt.

The two girls looked up alertly at the noise and grit their teeth as they spotted Ichigo.

"You must be the guy the death squad leader was talking about?" Menoly said as she scoffed.

"A kid though? Seriously?" She added as she looked at her partner with amusement.

"Must have some guts to kill Yammy like that" Loly said with repressed anger but it sounded like she was happy with what had happened.

I mean who wouldn't? Nobody liked Yammy when he was around anyways.

Ichigo just stayed put as he continued staring at the floor. Both his zanpaktō still being in their unreleased state.

"What brat?! Scared?" Loly asked as she smirked followed by Menoly.

**"King, kill them in one shot. We don't have time" **Shiro said as he sensed more half arrancars approaching.

If Ichigo had been controlled by his emotions at this moment then he may have killed them more brutally than he did with the squad leader but right now he had more important tasks.

He looked up at them and they flinched visibly. All they felt from those eyes was pure killer intent with not even a trace of remorse.

"Thinking you can scare us with those pathetic excuses for a zanpaktō? Just because you have dual blade doesn't mean shit!" Menoly yelled as she smiled wickedly.

Ichigo just crossed his blades in front of him as he released his shikai.

"So the brat can at least perform Shikai" Loly said as she eyed the blades with a calculative gaze while motioning Menoly to remove their own.

"Getsuga . . . juujisho!"

The second Ichigo yelled these words two yellow Getsuga Tensho's were released in shape of a cross.

Loly and Menoly's eyes widened as they saw the massive attack coming. The attacks surface range was too vast to side step while the attack was too fast to step behind of. Not only that but the attack was too strong to defy with their own cero so they did the only thing possible.

They tried to block the attack with their swords.

**"When he had first used this against that Candice chick then he had yelled at her to dodge it. Do you think he is going to do that again?"**

**_"Why do you even ask?"_**

**"No I guess. But they won't survive this even if they tried their only possible option. I mean, even the Candice chick had her arm cut off! These idiots are hundred times weaker than her!"**

**_"Why do you seem to have a problem with that? And why do you always recall that Quincy as 'Candice chick' ? "_**

**"I don't even try to remember their full names. Why should I anyways?"**The conversation in his inner world went on as Ichigo waited for the dust to clear and the shaking stopped.

When it finally did, he saw two bodies with their skin burned off and their hair sticking into the open burns on their faces.

He walked closer to the bodies and noticed that none of them were breathing.

_**"Get**** out of here Ichigo. This must have attracted a lot of attention. Considering you also broke the walls off"**_ Zangetsu said as Ichigo looked up to see that the walls indeed had been broken down for the next 500 meters.

**"We should be happy the attack was more towards the floor king. Or else the roof would have blown off. You do know what's upstairs right?" **Shiro said as he was comfortable with not recieving an answer.

Ichigo walked away in search for other arrancars as he pretended to not notice Grimmjow that had been standing and staring at the whole scene from behind a far away wall.

He knew that Grimmjow wouldn't tell anyone about what he saw because he would want to fight Ichigo himself to test his own powers.

* * *

"So this is Hueco Mundo?" Nanao said as she gazed at the plain desert filled with grey coloured sand.

"You have never been to Hueco Mundo? How were you promoted to a lieutenant's position?"

Nanao glared at him before sarcastically saying,

"Oh I don't know. Some captain had requested a promotion personally without leaving any space for arguement"

Shunsui scratched his head as he wearily smiled at Nanao before his eyes narrowed and his head whipped towards something which was a distance away.

"Is it a hollow?" Nanao asked as she raised her palms to cast a kidō.

Shunsui held out his hand in front of Nanao and said,

"No wait"

The noise increased in volume bit by bit until they were able to realise what it was.

"Crying? How is there a kid in the middle of a desert? And that too in Hueco Mundo of all places?" Nanao said as she and Shunsui took off into that direction.

They stopped when the source of the noise was visible. They didn't know what to think of the . . . situation.

A kid was crying and running away from three hollows that seemed to chase after her with ill intent.

* * *

"Why the hell did you have to cut my tail off?!" Pesche yelled as he covered his face with his coat while instant regeneration did it's work on his body.

But the only difference was that his tail wasn't growing back but his skin was healing at it's place.

Shunsui smiled awakwardly as the hollow trio glared at him.

Nanao tried her best to back her captain up but it wasn't working.

"Well when we saw that you were trying to hurt this girl we decided to help her out. Since you were the closest to catching her we didn't think that it would have been necessary to not attack you so he cut off your tail. We didn't know that you were playing . . . tag?"

"Plus it's a shinigami's in stinct to kill a hollow when spotted. Usually all hollows don't have any sense of understanding" Shunsui explained as his calculative eyes followed the lines of Nel's broken mask.

Nel pouted before nodding and saying,

"Nel understands that 4 eyes was worried about Nel but you shouldn't do that to my brothers! They were scared!"

Nanao looked at Shunsui, confused.

Shunsui smiled knowingly before he looked back at the three and said,

"We are here in search for someone . . . "

Shunsui trailed off as he set his eyes upon Pesche's hooded figure who quivered under his gaze.

"And I think you know who I am talking about"

One part within Pesche had been hoping the captain won't remember him while the other was hoping he would remember him and go save Ichigo.

But currently the first part was talking over as his fear was stronger than his will to protect a kid who was perfectly capable of protecting himself.

Pesche walked a few steps back as Shunsui walked towards him as his hands caressed the hilts of his zanpaktō with a small smile.

"Umm you see it was kind of-"

"Just tell us where he is" Nanao persisted, knowing that her captain wasn't in a mood to play around after three months of waiting.

"Well it is hard to explain since I -"

"What did you do to him?" Shunsui asked slowly as he removed his zanpaktō.

"Just listen will you! I didn't do anything to him! It's just that . . . " Pesche's foot hit a small rock and he fell on his back as Shunsui continued to walk towards him with his zanpaktō out.

Dondochaka and Nel were too scared to move and couldn't anyways as Nanao stood in between them and Pesche with her back facing them.

"Just spit it out!" Nanao said as she pulled at Pesche's collar harshly and narrowed her eyes.

Pesche's eyes travelled from Nanao to Shunsui a few more times before he let out a frustrated growl and yelled.

"Fine! He went to Las Noches! Now leave me and my siblings alone!" Pesche said as he felt the tension lift off from the atmosphere.

He now has realised that it wasn't actually tension or fear but Shunsui's spiritual pressure that had forced him to spill the truth.

Nanao loosened her grip on his collar and looked at Shunsui and asked,

"What's Las Noches?"

But she didn't continue further as she noticed the look of horror set on Shunsui's face.

"C-Captain?"

Shunsui didn't wait to give her an explanation as he sheathed back his zanpaktō and gave an order.

"Nanao, we are going to Las Noches right now. I will explain to you what that is on our way"

With that being said Shunsui shot off in the castle's direction.

Nanao looked at him go for a few seconds before looking back at the trio and saying,

"You three stay here until we are back. I want ask some more questions. Don't worry, we won't harm you"

Assuming the castle was Las Noches she hurried off to join her captain.

Pesche and Dondochaka stared calmly as they saw the backs of the shinigami descend towards Las Noches.

Pesche felt a tug at his coat and looked down to see Nel looking at him innocently.

"Should we wait for them brother? They are shinigami and we are hollows"

Pesche grinned as he picked Nel up and said,

"Of course we are going to stay! They seem like the good ones! We can talk to them about some things too! Right Dondochaka?"

The look of seriousness vanished from Dondochaka's face as his eyes travelled from Pesche's to Nel.

"Of course we are staying!" He said as he grinned brightly at Nel.

Nel smiled widely as they patiently waited for the three shinigami to return.

* * *

The silence was killing her.

The only source of sound was the distant wind that blew over her ears and their feet hitting the sand just to get a shot of force for shunpo.

She looked at her captain that looked as solemn as he had for the last 30 minutes.

The castle was far away. At first they had suspected that this was a mirage as the castle didn't seem to get any closer but after searching for any seals that might tell this was a set up they ended up with nothing.

Now that they knew that this wasn't a illusion the only other conclusion was that the castle was too big.

She ran through the events that had been occurring since the last month.

Ichigo showing up out of nowhere and passing the spiritual barrier of seireitei.

Him having no memory and being exceptionally young led him to become safe under her captain's care without the title Ryōka.

Then discovering the dual zanpaktō but not knowing they were his until the very end.

Him firing kidō without any knowledge of it.

His spiritual pressure exhaustion and hospitalisation.

Him having no reason to not feel hungry even though he had spiritual pressure.

The injection marks on his arms.

Him also gaining his memory back.

Him attacking her and Takeru as if they were assassins, telling them that he had previous encounters with assassins.

Him trying to escape and surprisingly knowing soul society's pathways as if he was walking around his home.

Getting caught by a mere adjucha in a captain's presence.

Then after 3 months of waiting when they finally got the chance to bring him back they find out he is on a trip to the most dangerous place in Hueco Mundo and not only plans to visit but he also plans to kill.

But for some reason everything fit into the story even though it didn't . . . **_at all_**.

Him being a lab experiment could explain all of this. His mind might have been altered to kill hollows like a soul candy. Then him having dual zanpaktō can also be a result of experimentation on his soul. Him knowing soul society must be memory transfer. Him not being hungry or the marks on his arms also a sign of experimentation. Same could be the explanation for the kidō. The person who wanted to put him into soul society must be from soul society and that might explain how he passed the barrier.

All of this could have been the result of experimentation.

But there was one thing that didn't fit in.

The squad 8 Gentei reiin.

How did this kid have a squad 8 seal on him? If the soul reaper responsible for this experiment was from squad 8 or squad 12, even then the date on which the seal was applied would have been in the underground archives.

Nobody could alter the records present there cause it was the law.

So she and her captain had checked the records and they found nobody with Ichigo's name or even an alias.

So the question still remained.

Where the hell did the kid pop up from?

"Nanao chan"

At the mention of her name she glanced at Shunsui who wasn't looking at her. But was staring in awe at something in front of them.

Doing the same Nanao also felt the same emotions run through her.

The castle being massive was an understatement.

But this brought new problems.

"How are we going to find Ichigo in here?"

Shunsui looked at her with a questioning look.

"Nanao chan, don't you feel it?"

Immediately after that was said Nanao expanded her senses and felt a kidō spell nearby. Probably a Bakudō.

Before she could have walked towards that direction Shunsui was already on it. They both stopped in front of a wall that looked the same for the next 1 kilometer.

"Thi-This is it but I see nothing"

Shunsui smiled and said,

"Even where there is nothing there is always something Nanao chan"

Shunsui bent down and without a second thought casted a low level Sōkatsui towards the lower wall.

That was when a cracked yellow box of kidō came into view. After the dust had cleared they also saw a hollowified puppy sleeping peacefully inside it.

"It's not dead right?" Nanao asked carefully.

Shunsui chuckled and said,

"No no, it's rather very comfortable and is sleeping till it's owner returns"

"Who would try to keep a hollow as a pet?"

"Well as long as it isn't trying to kill you and acts like a pet then it can be considered a pet"

Nozomi seemed to open her eyes slowly as she got up and stretched then looked at the two shinigami.

First she wagged her tail but when she noticed the lack of familiar orange hair she growled and started to bark at the two strangers.

But her small size and indifferent barking made the two soul reapers smile a bit.

"So she is like a normal dog huh?" Nanao asked playfully as she tapped the kidō barrier to calm down the puppy.

Nozomi backed away from Nanao's tapping and Nanao frowned.

"Oh don't be scared"

But Nozomi didn't seem to care as she back away more.

"Let her be Nanao chan. It's obvious she belongs to someone else"

Nanao looked at Shunsui and asked,

"Currently the only person besides us that can cast a kidō is Ichigo. I don't sense any other zanpaktō wielders around here"

"Well if Ichigo had put her under such a strong kidō barrier then she must be important to him. Break the barrier Nanao, we are taking the dog with us. We can't leave her here"

Before Nanao could argue Shunsui continued,

"Yes, you will be able to break the barrier. I have already weakened it by my Sōkatsui. Besides, you are a lieutenant. Ichigo may have a spiritual pressure that may tackle yours but he is still a kid"

Nanao then obeyed and started breaking the kidō seals one by one. If she used a destructive kidō then the barrier might break under too much pressure and harm the puppy.

It took 10 more minutes but soon the yellow box solidified to opaque and then dispersed in golden flecks.

The puppy's ears fell as she whined and backed away from Nanao knowing that her safety box was gone.

"Hey, it's okay, I am not going to hurt you" Nanao stated calmly but made no move towards the scared animal.

Another set of 10 minutes were wasted to tame the puppy but it worked in the end with Shunsui having scratches all over his face while the puppy sat happily in Nanao's arms.

* * *

He felt sick.

His whole body trembled as sweat rolled down his face while his shihakusho was damp from the exertion.

He clutched at his head again as his body was thrown in another fit of pain.

But the pain was from a totally different source. The sickness that rested at the end of his stomach was more than he could handle.

But he had to go on. He couldn't risk to stop when he was so near to the end.

Opening his eyes with a new found energy Ichigo tightened his grip on his bloodied zanpaktō.

He flicked the blood off his zanpaktō and then pushed them into the ground in front of him.

**_"Ichigo, you need to stop. Most of them are -"_**

**"King, everything is over ya idiot! Just let go of the switch damn it!"**

It was a understatement that the zanpaktō were worried.

Ichigo's white hayori, armour and his lieutenant batch had showed up together at a very wrong time. He had been fighting Szayelaporro Granz at that time. The man even though wasn't that much of an intellectual this time, it still took a lot from him to fight this guy.

And the guy had obviously noticed Ichigo's visible pain and tried to use it to his advantage but got killed in the end. Just like all the others.

He had decided to draw all the half arrancars to one single room for every fight.

It was as if he would go out for a 'hunt' then draw the prey near to his base then kill it then and there.

The room kept filling up with bodies with every prey and the reactions of the preys that fell into his misdirection trap next were further and further disgusted by the sight in front of them.

He had to leave some arrancar alive. So from the bunch of bodies, he knew that some of them were alive.

The reason had been simple.

Either they were going to be responsible for the growth in some of his friends or they were going to be their future allies.

So knowing that, he had been careful not to kill them even though he was under _switch_.

Till now the only ones he knew that were alive were :

Findorr Calius

Aroniero Arruruerie

Dordoni Alessandro

Nnoitra Gilga (with Tesra Lindocruz)

Baraggan Louisenbairn

Coyote Stark (With Lilynette Gingerbuck)

Tier Harribel

Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez

Cirucci Sanderwicci

Ulquiorra Cifer

And he was especially careful of keeping the 'Three Female Beasts' alive. This three man team even though got killed at the start of the war,. they were the first ones to go against the Quincy and were pretty strong.

Emilou Apacci

Franceska Mila Rose

Cyang Sunsung

These three beasts were to be taken care of delicately.

(Guys you don't need to remember these names by heart cause they will be present in the future chapters but I want you guys to know that I have chosen the alive and dead arrancars with solid reasoning and I would not change the list.)

Yes, he knew that these arrancar that he had left alive could be a bad set back if they didn't support his idealogies or did not end up with the mind set of their past selves but they were in the list for a reason and he was sure of it that they were completely needed.

When he had found out that NONE of these half arrancar were able to perform even the first resurrección he had to admit he was shocked. Even though _switch_ had not let his emotions get better of him his zanpaktō definitely had been happy about it.

His fight with Szayelaporro had been interesting as this young version of the calm arrancar he once knew relied more on brute force.

But even though he had been a weak opponent his armour and hayori had chosen the worse time to appear. The pain had been similar to his earlier experience but when the second wave came it was different.

The dull ache had been taken to an extreme measure.

The pain was so much that even in _switch_ he had felt it.

Sure it must have not hurt at all if Ichigo was in his war driven body but right now he had a kid's body that had not been so habitual to the rough movements and the pain.

But what was worse, was the sight in front of him.

Dozens of half arrancars were killed. Their body parts lying around in pools of blood. The smell of the metallic blood hitting him with all the force it could muster. The bodies lying in inhuman angles.

The room looked like a scene from the war they had left behind and it wasn't a pretty sight.

The fully formed arrancar for some reason still hadn't tried to attack Ichigo. He knew that currently Grimmjow was in hiding and that Coyote Stark was observing him from the control room with Tier Harribel.

They could have attacked but they didn't. The only two fully formed arrancars knew that Ichigo wasn't something that needed to be messed with right now even though he seemed weaker than them.

But they also knew he hadn't even released his Bankai yet.

They also were the only two people other than Baranggan that were capable of ruling Hueco Mundo. They didn't want to risk their lives in case of a sudden mass attack. Especially in absence of 'Lord Aizen'.

So they had made a tactical decision of waiting the fight out until they could save the half arrancar that were still alive.

Ichigo guessed they must have figured out that he had left them alive on purpose but he didn't mind. His 9 year old body was tired and it felt like it was at the brink of falling apart.

Ichigo now stood up straight as the pain had subsided to a dull ache and he was now covered in his former attire. The only difference being the size of the clothing and squad 8 batch that he had sealed hidden.

He pulled out his zanpaktō from the ground and he walked out the room covered head to toe in blood. The cool hallway was making his bloody clothes ice cold.

He sheathed back his zanpaktō as he pushed away his wet bloody bangs out of his line of sight and slowly walked out the room.

His feet suddenly wobbled as he used a hand to get support from the wall beside him.

His stomach was screaming in disgust yet his feet kept going.

He couldn't stop cause mission came first.

Mission always came first.

His mission is to-

**_"You have killed all the unnecessary half arrancars Ichigo. The mission has been completed. Even though instant regeneration will heal your physical wounds, discarding your emotions with the use of switch for such a long time has taken a lot of toll on your mental state. You-"_** Before Zangetsu could finish he was interrupted by Shiro who had already figured out what needed to be said.

**"Ya talk too much old man! King! Ya idiot! Let go of the fucking switch now! It's an order from me you fucking asshole! If ya don't then we will never let your ass into inner world again! Ya could use your powers but ya won't speak with us ever again! EVER!****"**

This did the trick. It always did.

The second the last words were spat out by his zanpaktō, Ichigo fell to his knees. His eyes gained back their almond hue and he grimaced at the memory of the room that he had left just a minute ago.

Flashbacks from the war ran in front of his eyes. The bodies bending and exploding in similar manner. The smell of blood. The rotting of flesh. The sound of metal squishing it's way through skin. Children dying of starvation. His friends dying-

He bent down gagged at the sick memories. He tried to close his mouth but the second he remembered the room which he had left he threw up. Having nothing but water in his system he was left dry heaving on the floor.

The zanpaktō said nothing as they knew this was going to happen.

Yes, the _switch_ did have it's advantages but it came with a price.

It shuts off his emotions and leaves nothing but tactical knowledge behind. It's an effective technique but when it's over, that's when the real hell starts.

All the emotions that the user would have felt while fighting would be suppressed in one place before being released all at once. That was the reason why this technique shouldn't be used for a long time.

He slid down against the wall as he let his hands rest on his sides.

**_"Rest now Ichigo. We will be on a look out."_**

Ichigo smiled in his weakened state as he said,

"Baka . . . you guys can't sense anything if I fall asleep"

Ichigo heard Shiro laugh sheepishly and Zangetsu also let out snort.

But even though he knew he was in a dangerous environment, as the child he was currently, he couldn't help but close his eyes just for a second.

But it would be just for a second, Right?

He knew he has to stay awake though. He has to.

He has no other choice.

His whole body was shaking with exhaustion but it wasn't what he needed. He needed to get out of here.

Without a second thought he slipped out a small knife that he had always kept in between the layers of his shihakusho sleeves and stabbed his stomach where he knew there wasn't an important organ nearby.

Wincing out in pain and obviously being more than awake now, he shakily stood up as he slipped the knife back in his sleeves.

**"Wow king I didn't know you had it in ya-"**

"Shut it Shiro or I will skin you alive when I am back in inner world" Ichigo spat out as he continued walking again.

**_"He is a child. Let him be right now." _**Zangetsu mummered to Shiro in their personal link.

**"A 27 year 'child'? Even though he will stay a teenager for another 300 or 400 fucking years it still doesn't mean that he is a kid." **

**_"His body Shiro. I am talking about his body." _**

**" . . . Oh"**

"You guys are talking aren't you?" Ichigo asked as he rolled his eyes. He had known about his zanpaktō talking personally when they were either talking about him or something he wouldn't like to hear.

**"No! We weren't of course! Right old man?"**

**_"Of course Shiro. Absolutely."_**

"You guys are agreeing about something and that's all the proof I need"

**_"Ichigo--"_**

**"Wait."**

The sudden change in hollow's tone didn't fit well with Ichigo. What else could go wrong now?

"What's up Shiro?" Ichigo asked, now concerned.

Suddenly the lights that were illuminating the long hallway went out and it left the surroundings in a cold facade.

Even though the dark hallway was currently empty. He knew that it won't last long.

Ignoring the pain Ichigo removed his zanpaktō and got into stance.

This feeling of foreboding. He had known something else was going to happen. But what?

"Old man . . . how many arrancars have we killed by now?"

Zangetsu considered for a moment before saying,

**_"I don't remember anybody else Ichigo."_**

"Well obviously you are wrong" Ichigo deadpanned.

Before he could think of anything else he heard light footsteps making their way towards him.

He held his zanpaktō tightly in the particular direction but his ears tried to pick up sounds that would run all around the room.

'I can only rely on hearing, sensing and touching. Everything else is pitch black.'

"It seems you have killed all of my commrades. But I don't know whether I should thank you for it or kill you too" The voice said.

"Who are you?" Ichigo calmly asked, hoping to extract more information before actually having to fight the person.

From what he could sense, he was definitely a fully formed arrancar.

"You have a very calm and controlled reiatsu for a child I would say. But you see, control is one of my feats and I am fast at my talents."

Ichigo's eyes widened as he finally recognised who was the owner of the voice.

**"How did we miss this Zommari freak?!"** Shiro said as he voiced out Ichigo's thoughts.

'He may have slipped from your sensing range Shiro' Ichigo said.

(Ichigo's conversation with his zanpaktō are in form of single quotations from now or else there will be confusion as to who he is conversing with. But zanpaktō dialogues would still be in double quotes cause mostly they will be inside his inner world. If they are brought outside then it will be mentioned.)

**"Nobody can slip from my sensing skills king! Not if we are 1000 times stronger than that fucker!"**

**_"Not with the seal on us Shiro. Right now we are only strong enough to be passed as a lieutenant . . . "_**

There was a pause.

'There is something else isn't it?'

**_"Yes. The ones you fought before were half arrancars that didn't even have their first resurrección but Zommari is a full arrancar"_**

'I should have asked Byakuya about the details of his fight with this guy, I only know he is fast'

"You seem to be lost in thought. You cannot afford to be distracted while fighting someone like me." Zommari said calmly again.

Snapping his attention back to reality Ichigo tried to figure out how Zommari had escaped Shiro's sensing range.

However weird it might sound, Shiro was the one given the responsibility of sensing if Ichigo wasn't paying attention.

Yes, it was true that the seal had weakened them by almost 90 percent but sensing is an ability that depends on skill rather than spiritual pressure.

So what was this guy's deal?

"You seem to not realise my power is do you?"

**"Ask him if his powers are reading minds"**

Ignoring the comment Ichigo squinted his eyes to see in the dark. Without seeing him he can't even figure out whether this man had used his resurrección or not cause he was good at concealing his spiritual pressure.

"I have been informed of your abilities. I didn't think Aizen sama would have been caught that easily. So I would like to ask . . . how did you know about us arrancars?"

Somewhere in Las Noches, Stark and Harribel stiffened at the question. The question they had been waiting for had been finally asked.

Ichigo knew that Stark and Harribel were watching him from the cameras. He could destroy the cameras but if he put his attention to those cameras even for a second then he could be left open for an attack.

As well as considering this guy was fast, the only thing left for him to do was-

"What makes you think I will tell you?"

-to fight him.

He knew that with the seal still on him, he would not be much of a task for his opponent.

Of course he wasn't obvious to the fact that Shunsui and Nanao were currently roaming around in Las Noches in his search. He had sensed his kidō being broken a while ago. Worried about Nozomi, he had tried to sense who had broken it.

"I know that you are stalling time for those two shinigami to show up" Zommari interrupted.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. Can this guy seriously read minds?

"They are not allies." Ichigo replied sharply.

"They may not be your allies but they are my enemies aren't they?"

There was silence for some time.

There was no use now. He didn't know if Shunsui and Nanao were here to kill him or to capture him. Whatever it was, he needed to get rid of Zommari first.

He knew that Shunsui and Nanao were very capable of hiding their spiritual pressure. Even he or Shiro won't be able to sense them. But the fact that they were going to see him fight was unavoidable.

Without a word Ichigo released Shiro and Zangetsu into their shikai. The bigger blade in his right while the smaller in his left.

"Dual zanpaktō? You sure are interesting child"

**"How the fuck can he see us while we can't?"**

'Maybe he can see in the 'dark'? Like the time I was-'

**_'-turned blind.' _**Zangetsu finished bitterly.

Zangetsu was still very against the idea of Ginjo ridding Ichigo of his sight for a few days just so Ichigo could learn how to fight blind. But Zangetsu wasn't able to do anything to the other substitute shinigami as he was trapped inside Ichigo's inner world.

**"Old man. You do know that a lot of time had passed since that shit had happened right?"**

Zangetsu said nothing at that.

Ichigo inwardly sighed but then a thought occurred to him as he said,

'Maybe I can slash my eyes just like Ginjo had done. I have instant regeneration so they will heal back. I know how to fight blind-'

**_"No"_**

That wasn't a request. It was a order.

**"It's just plain stupid that we can fight blind but we can't fight in pitch darkness."**

Ichigo wanted to agree with his zanpaktō but then he heard something coming from his left.

Immediately he jumped out of the way towards the other side of the narrow hallway as Zommari's punch created a crater with a loud crack that resonated throughout the hallway while big pieces of the floor were sent flying in different directions.

"Bakudō 81: Danku"

A translucent vertical rectangular barrier covered Ichigo's front from the debris as he held his zanpaktō to his right to avoid a swing from Zommari's zanpaktō.

"Using your punch's debris to distract me and attacking me from the side? Not bad" Ichigo complimented.

"Knowing it was a distraction and using Kidō against it. Not bad either kid" Zommari said as he jumped back, once again making him invisible.

'Well he is using his sword. So that means he hasn't released his resurrección.

The Bakudō faded along with a bit of light it was providing and Ichigo held up his zanpaktō once again. Currently Zommari wasn't moving from his position.

'We need light. There is no other way to fight this guy. He is fast and I don't even know what his resurrección does. I am also pretty sure he has another trump card up his sleeve. Let's see, well how can i-'

Ichigo then glanced up for a second before a smirk took over his features.

Zangetsu who understood the gesture sighed as he shook his head and said,

**_"Even after so many years of training and learning how to fight silently, you still cannot fight without causing too much of destruction"_**

"Well I guess some things never change" Ichigo said out loud.

Zommari who had been observing the boy through his special vision raised an eyebrow at that.

'He can talk to his zanpaktō pretty fluently and doesn't seem to be exhausted with that task' Was Zommari's conclusion.

He saw Ichigo bring his zanpaktō to their normal state and sheath them back. Then he raised his hands upwards and stretched his back.

'He dropped his guard, even though it's suspicious, now is my chan-'

Zommari's train of thought had stopped when he heard Ichigo mutter something. It couldn't have been heard if he didn't have enhanced hearing as well.

"Hadō 33: Sōkatsui"

The blue coloured blast that was almost half the size of the small hallway shot towards the roof of the building.

Zommari's first reaction at the small kidō spell was a smirk as he knew that there was another floor above this one and the Hadō would only blast off this roof, not the one above it. And currently, all the building lights except the control room's were off.

But he frowned when he noticed that the boy still held his arms up. His one palm still behind his other.

'Wait-'

"Hadō 73: Sōren Sōkatsui !"

This time the same blue coloured Kidō shot off his palms again.

But the only difference was that it was 10 times larger.

"Wait! That would not only not blast off the roof but also let the debris-"

He was cut off as he noticed light started to fall inside the hallway along with large pieces of the roof.

* * *

Nanao and Shunsui had to admit that Ichigo was good at covering his reiatsu. They had been searching for him for many hours. At least it felt like that.

They still didn't know why the lights were off in this place. Their first thought was that it had been abandoned but when they felt the spiritual pressures inside, they knew this wasn't just a fluke.

Nanao looked at the unreleased and almost translucent Shakkahō in her hands before she let it disappear completely and made a new one.

"Hadō 31"

The red ball of light formed in her hand again as Nozomi who had been walking behind them looked at the ball in wonder.

"Maybe we should have bought a map?" Shunsui complained with a pout.

Nanao narrowed her eyes and asked,

"And where exactly would we have found a map when Soul Society doesn't even know that Las Noches exists?"

Her accusing tone didn't go unnoticed by Shunsui.

"Nanao chan, Soul Society does know about Las Noches"

Nanao then sharply looked at Shunsui and asked,

"Then why didn't we take any action against this? A whole castle full of half arrancars that could potentially harm us, exist and we do nothing about it?"

"We didn't take any action because we didn't know that Las Noches was so developed. All we knew was that it was a run down place with a ruler that guides all the small class hollows" while he said that, Shunsui had a expression on his face that Nanao wasn't able to decipher. It was as if-

Nanao's eyes widened as she realised what Shunsui was proposing.

"So that means someone has been helping the ruler of Las Noches? Or someone else has become the ruler?"

Shunsui merily nodded as they continued walking.

"But shinigami should have noticed this development right? We come here for monthly check ups as well"

Shunsui paused in his tracks as Nozomi who had been walking without paying attention crashes into Shunsui's legs and then barked at him. But the man paid no attention to her as he was deep in thought.

"You know Nanao chan, you make sense"

Nanao stopped as well and gave him a questioning look.

"Let's just assume Aizen missed this large castle in his last report. But what about the earlier searches? Who did the earlier searches?"

At Shunsui's question Nanao thought for a second before saying,

"I don't know which squad did the earlier searches. We will have to ask Captain Tōsen cause his squad handles all the Hueco Mundo reports"

Shunsui silently agreed with Nanao but both were still deep in thought. It was obvious that someone had been purposely not giving in correct reports.

"It seems Ichigo was somehow aware of this" Nanao muttered.

"No, we still can't be sure. Remember Nanao chan, he is an experiment. For all we know he had been designed to do this"

Nanao sighed but she knew her captain was correct.

"We need to find him" Nanao stated.

They were back to square one.

"And I ask this question once again, How will we find hi-"

A blast resounded through the building as the ground shook. From the vibrations it was obvious that the blast had been nearby.

"Seriously, this kid is the beacon of destruction" Shunsui stated before both of them took off in the following direction with Nozomi in Shunsui's hands as Nanao held the kidō to light the dark passage.

* * *

Zommari's raw spiritual pressure that was released when he used his resurrección had saved him from the debris as the spiritual pressure had destroyed the big rocks that once belonged to the roof.

He looked over to the boy that had removed both of his zanpaktō and was currently slashing all the debris with ease.

Now Zommari was covered in what looked like a too big ball gown that was pink and had yellow eyes with varying sizes all over it. The eyes were not only on his dress but also on rest of his body.

"**What the actual fuck? I thought Charlotte had weird clothes. This guy definitely wins the ugly dress contest"**

"Focus Shiro" Ichigo mumbled as he took in the appearance.

However ugly the transformation might look, if the guy destroyed the large rubble of the roof with just releasing his resurrección then he had to be strong.

There was no way that he would win this fight with strength. He will have to use his brain completely.

The air suddenly turned cold again and Ichigo's attention was bought back to his opponent.

"I don't appreciate it when you aren't paying attention child. I hope you do take this seriously cause it would lead to your own good. At least until i kill you."

**"There is something weird happening king. Something to do with those eyes" **Shiro pointed out.

Ichigo let his reiatsu reach out to Zommari's form but nothing felt out of ordinary. Yes, the amount of reiatsu in those eyes were greater that the other parts of the body but that was natural. The eyes were obviously used for attack so that's why they had more spiritual pressure.

Ichigo then felt two other well hidden reiatsu signatures.

'All I sense is Nanao and Captain who are right above us currently. Who knew they would be at the second floor?'

**"So they are hiding on the second floor and looking at us? How are ya going to fight king?"**

'I am probably going to release you guys but I won't use Getsuga Tenshō or Juujishō. It needs to look like I can't use my shikai'

Nanao and Shunsui were staring down at the exchange between Ichigo and Zommari silently. They were on the floor right above them and the gaping hole made by Ichigo seemed to work just fine as a view. Shunsui had been willing to jump into the fight but Nanao had stopped him with a stern look.

Even though they cared about Ichigo, right now he was nothing but a suspect.

They looked at Ichigo and took in the additions to his shihakusho. The thin straps that looked like an armour of sorts and the hayori strapped around his waist.

(Basically chibi TYBW Ichigo with his small braid that I had said will have significance later)

**_"It was a wise decision to seal your lieutenant's batch the second it had appeared_****_"_**

'Well at least they will only see my fighting abilities. Start preparing a crazy backstory Shiro. From the kind of evidence i had left behind, they probably think i am some sort of an runaway experiment or something' Ichigo analyzed.

He tried to sense again. Even though Shiro was saying something was wrong with Zommari's reiatsu, he still didn't feel anything out of the ordinary.

**_"I don't sense anything"_**

'Me neither'

**"I do! How aren't you guys fucking able to?!"**

"I see . . . you are trying to figure out what these eyes are for aren't you?"

'So it's really has something to do with his eyes' Ichigo thought as he kept staring ahead at his opponent.

**_"His eyes . . . Shiro had said he had sensed something weird from them but isn't saying anything else. He isn't visible either. He has decided to hide." _**Zangetsu said.

'What is it Shiro?'

Shiro still said nothing.

'Shiro now's not the time to ignore me'

Still nothing.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes at his zanpaktō's silence and then gazed at his opponent again. This time more carefully.

'All of his yellow eyes look like they are pupil-less. None of them- wait, that one has a black pupil.' Ichigo said as he noticed the eye on Zommari's left elbow that had a big black pupil while the others were still colourless.

"What is his power?" Shunsui whispered.

"Who are you talking about? Cause we know nothing about either of them" Nanao whispered dryly.

Shunsui shook his head at the comment and said,

"I am talking about the weird dressed guy."

Nanao looked at Zommari closely and said,

"I think his powers are something related to reiatsu"

"You have noticed it."

Zommari had stated it rather than asking. But what was it's use? It meant Zommari had used an attack but he felt nothing. No pain or a visible sign of destruction.

"What did you do?"

"You must have also noticed your zanpaktō's silence" Zommari pointed out.

Ichigo's eyes widened as he sharply looked at his larger zanpaktō and noticed a black flower pattern with 8 petals. On the black sword the black pattern was barely visible but it was present.

'Zangetsu O san, is this why Shiro wasn't responding?'

**_"It's wise to assume it indeed was. I can't feel his presence in the inner world and I don't think you do outside as well._****_"_**

'Yeah, I think the best choice right now is to-'

Suddenly Ichigo felt Shiro shudder in his hands. He looked back at his zanpaktō and saw it held an half formed Getsuga Tenshō.

Aimed at him.

Ichigo's eyes widened as he quickly flashstepped out of the attack's range while he left the sword there. The large attack blasted off the wall in front of which Ichigo had been standing a few moments ago.

Ichigo thought he should try to communicate with Shiro again as he stood in mid air just 10 feet above his zanpaktō.

But when he was going to do so until he saw his zanpaktō move again and face him again with yet another Getsuga Tenshō.

(Guys, the zanpaktō is still in his sword form. It isn't like Shiro is outside and firing attacks at Ichigo)

**_"How can a zanpaktō, even though under control, move like that?"_**

Ichigo continued to flashstep out of his zanpaktō's continuous attacks with a thoughtful expression. Then suddenly it clicked.

'I think Zommari's eyes cannot control a person's conciousness, in this case, Shiro's mind. I think it can control reiatsu.'

Zangetsu thought for a second before he understood the implication as well and said,

**_"Yes. Even though reiatsu control is almost similar to mind control for any spiritual being, there is still a huge difference."_**

'Yeah. This guy can control Shiro as a sword because only in shikai a zanpaktō can release it's spiritual pressure. So if I manage to get it back to it's normal state, then-'

**_"He won't be under Zommari's control anymore"_**

Ichigo readied himself as a plan had formulated in his mind but abruptly stopped as another problem erupted.

'But he will try to attack you in your inner world' Ichigo reasoned.

Zangetsu took this information suprisingly calmly and said,

**_"Then I will fight him. It wouldn't be the first time anyways."_**

Not doubting his zanpaktō once again Ichigo kept dodging his other zanpaktō's attacks and at the same time he got closer to it, even if it was by a single step per second.

"Well he sure seems sufficient in shunpo. No wonder he got past us that night" Shunsui commented.

Ichigo concentrated as his hand reached out towards the hilt of his zanpaktō. The sword turned just in time and started releasing another Getsuga Tenshō but Ichigo was quicker.

"Bakudō 61: Rikujōkōrō!"

Soon 6 bright yellow rods had the zanpaktō in a deadlock. The Bakudō prevented it from using any kind of spiritual pressure. Hence preventing any attack.

Without waisting another second Ichigo reached out for the hilt and as soon as he touched it he reverted it back to it's original form and sheathed it on it's back.

"You are a quick thinker indeed. But that won't help you in surviving against me." Zommari said.

Ichigo observed Zommari again. He was sure that he was moving fast enough for the guy to not be able to attack him again. At that speed he shouldn't have been able to aim his flowers on him.

But he also knew this guy was faster than him currently.

"You are being arrogant child. Just because you think you moved fast enough doesn't mean I couldn't have attacked you."

"Oh I know you are fast alright. It's just hard to guess where you have attacked cause there is no pain"

Zommari smirked as his eyes looked at a point on his pink dress.

Ichigo followed his eyes and saw another eye on that dress that held used black pupil.

Immediately he found his eyes traveling to Zangetsu in his left hand but sighed in relief when he didn't see the similar mark of control on the blade.

"Don't get relieved so quickly boy"

Ichigo felt his right hand twitch without his will.

That was all he needed.

Without giving it a second thought he slashed the tendons of his right hand with Zangetsu who was still in his left hand.

The cut wasn't deep or anything but it was done at such a precise place that the hand wasn't capable of moving anymore.

Nanao gasped slightly as she saw Ichigo carelessly slash his own arm. She looked at Shunsui and saw he was grimacing as well.

And the fact that Ichigo wasn't even fazed by it wasn't helping their senses either.

After he felt like his arm really wasn't moving anymore he noticed black flower pattern on his wrist that he hadn't earlier.

'Even though the pattern only appeared on my wrist he was able to control my whole hand'

"You didn't wait a second to make your right arm immobile. That wasn't something I was expecting I will give you that" Zommari said.

'Now all I need is to figure out how to know when he will attack'

There was a stare down for a few minutes. Nobody moved an inch. Both opponents were aware of the two watchers but they knew they would interrupt only when necessary. And one moment of distraction might cost them too much.

Then he saw it.

Zommari's hands that were joined in front of his chest separated. It was just for a second but it was observable.

Before Zommari's hands could touch again Ichigo shunpoed out of the way and before Zommari could guess what had happened Ichigo was behind him, Zangetsu ready for a swing.

But in the last second Zommari felt the air behind him shift and he was out of the way, leaving his clone behind.

(I don't remember the name of the ability but Zommari had said he was so fast that he could leave after images / clones that could actually get hit. He could make at least 5 of such clones.)

Ichigo slashed the clone along it's back and swung for a second attack but suddenly his senses kicked in.

Without glancing back he jumped up into the air as another flower pattern was launched silently and it landed in the wall in front.

Ichigo scowled as he saw the clone disappear.

'He can make clones huh? I can use many more than him with my current speed but not with Captain and Nanao watching. I should only know average shunpo'

The next few moments were passed as Ichigo tried to land swings on Zommari while Zommari always tried to form clones to escape and then try to land his attack.

After the first few minutes Ichigo backed out and stood at his first position while Zommari stayed still as well.

On the second floor Shunsui let out a low whistle. It was obvious that the boy was experienced with his sword. It was as if the surroundings were made for his fighting style. But in reality he was just that good in adapting with his surroundings.

But it looked like he was uncomfortable without his other sword.

"Child, how long have you been a dual wielder?" Zommari asked and smirked as he saw Ichigo tense.

'My act is working'

Ichigo inwardly congratulated himself but kept a straight face and said,

"I don't know"

Zommari had expected any answer but not that.

"What do you mean? Or are you so arrogant to not take me worthy enough for an answer?" Zommari mused.

"No, I really don't know. I am an experiment . . . just like you"

Ichigo thought if his acting skills were good enough to fool an espada then a lieutenant and a captain would not be a problem either.

He knew that acting as if he can't handle using only one of his swords wasn't going to be useful against Zommari. But it would help him later when he has to give an explanation full of lies to soul society.

Nanao and Shunsui nodded at each other, knowing that their suspicions were correct.

"But who made him?" Nanao whispered.

"We will have to ask him that"

Back at the small arena Zommari was thinking hard. He was even considering the possibility that Ichigo was one of Aizen's experiments.

But he knew that even though Aizen might consider that the arrancar were useless, he still wouldn't be a fool to kill off any sort of allies.

"I am here to kill all hollows. Starting from the stronger ones"

Ichigo felt stupid for even considering that he could kill all the hollows. He could actually if he didn't have his seal on him and would have to go Bankai if he wanted to destroy one whole freaking dimension. But he couldn't do that cause that would destroy the balance of souls.

But anything for an act anyways.

Zommari scoffed and said,

"Aren't you a shinigami? What kind of shinigami is ready to destroy the balance of souls?"

"My one and only purpose is combat and to kill hollows" Ichigo said emotionlessly.

Nanao flinched at the tone of the child she knew was once an happy-go-lucky kid. During this fight Ichigo had been nothing but an emotionless kid who knows how to fight and think on his feet. Even if it involved cutting his own skin.

Zommari understood that the kid didn't hold any kind of psychological traits and said,

"I see"

"At least I was able to figure out your attack method and limit" Ichigo said.

"What?" Zommari asked, a little dazed.

"Your hands join when you attack plus you can only make five clones can't you? And you only have 50 eyes. Out of which you have wasted 34 on attacking me"

"Your overall analysis is precisely correct except for the last factor"

Ichigo's eyes widened as he looked over Zommari's form against to notice that the 35th eye was open as well.

He looked over his body and spotted the same black flower pattern on his left sandaled foot.

He slashed the tendons of his left leg without a second thought and looked up at Zommari.

"I have felt your technique thrice now. Don't you think it's too dangerous?" Ichigo asked.

"Well that's what attacking someone means."

"Well not in my case."

Zommari raised an nonexisting eyebrow as Ichigo stood there with unseen confidence. The confidence wasn't visible through his body language cause Ichigo never let go of his casual stance. The confidence was radiated in some other unknown way.

As if the boy already knew how this fight would end.

"Your eyes . . . they can't control someone"

Zommari found himself questioning the boy's logical skills again. His power was control. It meant control. So when the boy said he couldn't control him he had sort of lost respect for the boy.

"Your arrogance still blinds you child-"

"Oh fucking stop with that arrogance and pride bullshit . . . I already have heard enough about it from Byakuya" Ichigo muttered the last part to himself as he scowled lightly. The most emotion he had shown uptil now.

"Well he sure seems to have a good set of vocabulary right there" Shunsui whispered and smirked as Nanao passed him an annoyed look.

Ichigo felt himself get tense as he realised that he had spouted some rather colourful words that should be very new for an 'lab experiment'. Heck not even a kid should know this.

'I thought after so much time I had spent in Hueco Mundo's atmosphere during the war, it wouldn't affect me this much . . . guess it still does'

Having a hollow inside you especially when you are in Hueco Mundo makes you go a bit on the crackhead side. It was what Zangetsu had observed about Ichigo and Shiro.

It had always affected Shiro much quicker as he starts cursing every two sentences after their entry into Hueco Mundo but it starts to affect Ichigo a bit later.

They had been living inside that hidden cave so it hadn't been affecting him much.

"Nice vocabulary you have for a 9 year old" What Zommari had said was a taunt but Ichigo could feel the suspicion in the tone.

"I was designed this way . . . I guess?" Ichigo tried his best to sound unsure.

Both of them spoke nothing as a silent agreement, which was odd considering they were enemies, passed between them.

"Are you even capable of explaining why my powers aren't capable of doing what they are supposed to do? Only according to you"

"I figured it out" Ichigo said it as if this was all it would take for him to win this fight.

When Zommari didn't say anything Ichigo just said,

"Your attacks aren't fully control based. It is based on reiatsu. They control reiatsu in specific regions don't they?"

Zommari grit his teeth but didn't show the disdain on his face. But neither did he speak to deny the truth the boy had blurted out.

Finally gaining control of his thoughts Zommari confidently asked,

"But how do you plan on defeating me child? You have figured it out indeed. But using knowledge against physical attacks won't work. But of course I wouldn't blame you for not knowing this. You have been born just some months ago as it seems"

Nanao furrowed her brows at the arrancar. Either that man is really stupid or he didn't know what Shinigami are capable of with kidō.

"I won't tell you obviously . . . cause you would know what I mean in a few seconds"

Zommari's eyes widened and within a flash he clapped his palms again to launch an attack but the big flower pattern appeared to stop just in front on Ichigo. It looked like an invisible wall had been set up.

Before Zommari could voice his questions Ichigo said,

"Bakudō 81: Danku. An Bakudō that stops any kind of reiatsu attack"

Zommari glared at the boy as anger flared within him. He sonidoed to the boy's right and joined his palms twice, launching two attacks.

Again the two flowers appeared on an invisible wall.

"Did he set up those walls so fast that we didn't even see him do it?" Nanao whispered.

"No. He maybe fast but according to the speed he has shown uptil now, he isn't faster than us. Unless he is holding back which I highly doubt"

(I know Shunsui kinda sounds like a idiot to assume Ichigo isn't holding back but he has his reasons. As for Ichigo, he really is holding back but on certain techniques.)

"Then when did he cast the kidō?"

"You know there are some people who can cast Kidō without it's corresponding hand signs. Just like people who cast without incantation. And perhaps he can do both." Shunsui pointed out.

Nanao's shock was clearly visible. Even she, who completely relies on kidō uses it's hand sign. She is skilled enough to not use the incantation but she was never able to go forward without both the aspects.

Down below Zommari was having trouble with the kid. He was completely surrounded on four sides by invisible walls who blocked any spiritual attacks if possible.

His own attack was no exception.

The walls were now completely covered in black flowers only leaving enough space to observe the boy inside.

"You have used 10 more of your eyes. You only have five more. What are you planning to do Zommari?"

Zommari stopped the assault he had been planning for a moment.

"How did you know my name?"

Ichigo mentally cursed at that. He had actually taken a note of the fact that Zommari hadn't told him his name at the start of the fight. But during the fight it had slipped from his mind.

Well it was time to play an 'Urahara' on this guy.

"Don't try to play tricks on me. You have told me your name" Ichigo stated.

He didn't try to sound overconfident nor did he try to sound unsure. He just stated it as if it was nothing.

Telling your enemies that were at fault instead of you yourself was one of the 'Urahara' cards Ichigo had taken a liking into.

Zommari faltered a bit but didn't show it for more than a second.

But Ichigo was quick to catch on.

"I didn't tell you." Zommari's voice sounded trailed off. As if he wasn't concentrating on speaking but something else.

"Oh yes you did. Don't play these tricks on me just so-" Ichigo looked up just in time to see Zommari planning to attack him from above, "-you can attack me from above"

Zommari had expected this attack to work. He really had. But when he was just above Ichigo's head he saw Ichigo's two fingers pointed at him.

Zommari tried to move away as quickly as he could but Ichigo had already casted the spell.

"Bakudō 61: Rikujōkōrō!"

The six rods of light struck Zommari from different directions and met at one point inside him. This turned his legs immobile for time being.

Zommari fell down as Ichigo shunpoed out of his falling range.

Now he was standing in the 4 walled Bakudō structure which was covered in his own attacks while still being held by the other yellow Bakudō.

"Why you-" Zommari gritted out as he tried to join his hands again as he felt the Rikujōkōrō weakening.

Ichigo saw this and said,

"Not so fast. Bakudō 1: Sai!"

As soon as the Rikujōkōrō faded because of Zommari's efforts he felt another round of pain as his hands that he had been planning on joining suddenly were pulled behind his back and he fell forward.

It was as if an invisible force was binding his hands behind.

Just like Rukia, Ichigo had taken a liking into the simple spell. It was just entertaining to watch the person fall as if they had been hit by a bullet then watch them quiver in dust.

Zommari used his head to push his body upwards, currently his dress wasn't helping.

He now only had 2 flowers to dispel.

He finally managed to stand up straight even though his hands were still behind his back.

"Don't think it's over cause you have me binded you fool! Your arrogance is blinding you! Nobody can kill me!"

'So he has finally started going crazy'

"I am sorry but it's over."

Before Zommari could comprehend what had happened Ichigo was above him. He couldn't even move out of the way as he was trapped inside those four walls.

He saw Ichigo mutter the words silently.

"Hadō 73: Sōren Sōkatsui"

Before the attack launched Zommari saw Ichigo's eyes. They held something that he didn't think he would ever see in a 'lab' experiment's eyes. Not even in a little boy's eyes.

It was something he usually saw in high ranking shinigami or Espadas higher in rank than him. It was something he feared he should always have more. It was . . . **years of**** experience.**

The attack teared apart his flesh down to his every bone. There was nothing left of him except some black sticky liquid.

The smell would have made him gag if he wasn't used to it. He remembered throwing up the first time he had smelt it. And then that week he had been terribly sick for no reason. Even Orihime had taken it better than him at that time.

Apparently an appointment with Unohana told him he just had a very weak stomach and he had just eaten something bad. Probably Orihime's cooking.

For a week he had been thinking that he was emotionally weaker than Orihime. He wouldn't like to admit but he was a bit jealous of Orihime at that time but the appointment said otherwise.

Suddenly he was aware of the two other occupants of the building.

Ichigo stood over the substance as he felt the flowers on his Bakudō walls fade away. He let the walls fade away as well.

He moved out of the small area of rubble with small steps as he finally felt the adrenaline rush out of him.

He let out a hiss in pain as he felt his wounds rubbing against his shihakusho.

His wounds were healing but it was too slow. Usually slices like this would be healed after 15 minutes. This meant that instant regeneration wasn't working.

Instant regeneration did it's work every time so why wasn't it working now?

Suddenly he felt something he hadn't felt throughout the fight.

It was dread of realisation.

'How could I be so stupid? The seal won't allow Instant regeneration to work . . . '

**"Well then it's a good thing ya didn't slash your eyes king!"**

Ichigo didn't have enough energy to respond to his zanpaktō. He felt dizzy and overall like hell. But at least he knew his zanpaktō was alright.

His normal healing was talking place so he was at least able to walk. His Quincy side was the only reason that was happening or else he should've be crawling right now.

Suddenly he felt something hold the end of his shihakusho.

He swiftly turned around, his hands already on his zanpaktō but stopped when he saw Nozomi who sat there innocently. But her hung down ears and the wag-less tail said otherwise.

She looked sad.

"Hey girl . . ." Ichigo whispered as he crouched down and took the puppy in his arms.

The puppy gladly climbed up in his stretched out arms and stuck her head between Ichigo's chest and arm as she tried her best to give him some warmth.

Ichigo wondered how Nozomi wasn't bothered by his cold blood soaked clothes but then he realised that the young puppy's mindset must not understand the concept of blood and pain.

He then decided to make sure to keep it that way.

"You were tired huh? Can't say I am any different" Ichigo whispered.

The puppy's only response was a small huff as she sank deeper into his arms, almost asleep.

"You can rest now"

"And you young man, can rest in soul society"

Ichigo tensed at Shunsui's voice. Even though it didn't sound hostile it still passed the message as to how serious Shunsui was.

He considered his options. His task in Hueco Mundo was done. At least for now. Pesche, Dondochaka and Nel would be fine now as most half arrancars were dead. He now had to work out something that would stop Aizen from entering Hueco Mundo till Rukia's execution. For that he needed to be in soul society.

If he wanted to fight or run away he was sure he would lose even if he tried. Even on a one on one fight with each of them.

He might hate this and it might take a toll on him emotionally but he was out of options. He couldn't just chicken out just because he wasn't mentally strong enough.

"Alright"

Nanao and Shunsui looked at the boy suprised. They had expected him to run or try to attack them at least. But Ichigo just stood there cradling the puppy as he stared at their feet.

"Are you sure?"

That was a stupid question on their part cause they were the ones that wanted him to come in the first place.

"Yeah"

The shock was gone as soon as it came. They knew how tactically Ichigo thought. Ichigo must have realised he can't win if he fought a captain and lieutenant in his current condition.

They were about to start walking when Ichigo let out another hiss of pain. His face twisted as he bent down but never stopped walking. Nozomi whined as she raised up her head and licked Ichigo's cheek, it wiped some of the dirt off his face.

"Are you okay?"

Was he okay?

Ichigo was downright terrified of the situation.

He couldn't even look them in the eye. That was the only thing that was stopping him from actually showing his fear. Wherein for the physical pain? That wasn't so bad. But it was bad enough to the point he couldn't walk.

"I can't walk"

His teenage self would have toughed it out and walked anyways but now he wasn't that arrogant.

And he _really_ needed some rest.

Nanao went ahead to take Nozomi from Ichigo but the dog growled at her hand.

Nanao flinched back at the action but Ichigo just sighed. He took Nozomi and raised her upwards. The dog gladly abided and sat on his right shoulder. It was so small that it fit between Ichigo's neck and shoulder.

Nanao then helped Ichigo to rest on Shunsui's back. Shunsui instantly knew something was different about his holding position.

"Someone has a really good growth spurt" Shunsui mused as they slowly took off in Pesche's direction.

Ichigo said nothing as he felt his eyelids get heavy and he fell into his first good sleep after months of fighting.

Nanao noticing that Ichigo was asleep decided to ask Shunsui,

"Captain . . . what's going to happen next?"

Shunsui said nothing as he lazily kept running and staring at the white desert ahead.

When Nanao was going to give up on getting an answer Shunsui finally whispered in an defeated tone.

"I don't know Nanao chan. I just don't."

* * *

**Guest who commented 'Fucking retarted': Honey, this isn't a site where we introduce ourselves.**

**777torn777: I am actually aiming to make the puppy something important in his life. Idk why but I think something NEW in the PAST is going to help. I am actually thinking as I go lol. BUT I do have an future in mind so don't worry much haha XD**

**Zeynel: THANKS! And ik I love Nozomi too!! And idk if Ichigo is clearly understanding the situation but I think he is thinking that keeping Nel away from the situation will keep her safe : (**

**BioHazard82: Thank you so much!!**

**Guest who commented 'Angst, angsety angst angst' : HAHA LOL IKR. That is actually what I was aiming for** **haha**


	10. Chapter 10

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**I have seen that there are a lot of thoughts about Nozomi. I am thankful that all of them are positive! Actually I am giving Ichigo a pet because of my own personal experience with depression. When I had been totally at the bottom of it my parents had given me a dog and even though Kody didn't do much at start, she still made me do something. "I have to do something, at least for her!" That's what I would always think. And soon I recovered. That's why I wanted to give Ichigo a start to recover.**

* * *

**[WARNING]**

**Chapters ahead might contain some triggering instances like purging or PTSD or something around that. If you get easily affected by this then I suggest you drop reading this. If you really wanna know the story even if it might trigger you then make someone else read it and then explain it to you in simple terms instead of you yourself going into the details.**

**Thank you for understanding! : )**

* * *

**-At Kurosaki household-**

That day like Orihime had suggested, Masaki and Isshin had tried their best to trick their son into small traps. Like stepping on a lego or tripping on a toy or something close to it. After nothing major happened they did try to make him fall over something for a couple of more times but Ichigo somehow avoided all the traps.

After the first few fails Masaki and Isshin were determined to make him fall into at least one or else they knew something was wrong cause usually their kid was surprisingly dense and hella clumsy.

They used every little idea that their brains could muster but none of them were working. Somehow Ichigo would just avoid them 'accidently'.

The only trap Ichigo did fall for was the mildly poisoned food.

**(People, i am not encouraging poisoning your kids. When i use 'mildly poisoned', i mean he will have a headache or a stomach ache at max. Don't try this.) **

Masaki had made sure to serve them in different plates like she usually does and they acted casually too. Ichigo was too busy with discussing a new prank on Uryu with Orihime.

Masaki and Isshin soon gave up on tricking the little boy. He had eaten the food which they had poisoned. Which meant that their trick did work on him and he hadn't developed a sixth sense like Orihime had suggested.

Orihime was very sorry for making them go through this for nothing. The parents had assured her that it wasn't in vain and they were still wondering how Ichigo passed those physical traps but Orihime was persistent and went back home in guilt.

"Mom . . . "

Masaki was bought out of her trail of thought as Ichigo called out for her. She sat up on the sofa putting the book aside and looked behind to see Ichigo rubbing his eyes in sleep.

"What's wrong dear?" Masaki asked softly, she knew that the mild poison will make him sleepy at first.

"I am going to bed. I put Yuzu and Karin to bed too, I did my homework, I kept my clothes in the dryer and i-"

Masaki smiled and interrupted him,

"Don't worry Ichigo you can go to bed"

Sometimes she wondered how she had such a obidient kid. She usually heard other moms complaining about their kids never listening. She actually kind of liked showing Ichigo off. Not many kids were like him.

"Okay then. By the way dad's already asleep. He said he was tired from today's work and told me to tell you. When are you going to bed?" Ichigo asked as he covered a small yawn.

Masaki glanced at the clock over the kitchen counter and said,

"Well I am going to sleep too. It's not that late but we can sleep now"

She got up and switched off the TV and saw Ichigo shrug and walk up the stairs towards his room.

She saw him pause in front of his door for a second as he rubbed the bridge of his nose and squint his eyes in confusion before opening the door and go in.

The boy will likely end up with a stomach ache and a headache at most.

She did feel a bit bad about doing this to Ichigo but she was actually pretty shocked when Ichigo avoided all the obstacles without even having a slightest hint that they were there. It was weird.

It was as if he knew what to do instinctively.

Nothing major happened after that. She went to her room and saw Isshin sprawled on the bed, snoring. Stifling a giggle she changed herself into a yellow pair of pajamas and went to bed as well.

Not even 20 minutes had passed after she had fallen asleep that she heard a door close. Already too deep in sleep she didn't pay much attention to it. Someone must have taken a visit to the bathroom.

Five minutes later she woke up with a start and started taking her covers off quickly. Something woke her up. Some noise. And it was loud. The noise wasn't stopping and she was too drowsy to guess what it was.

She was going to get up but she felt something was missing. She looked beside her to find her bed was empty.

Where was Isshin?

The covers had been thrown off and the lights in the bedroom weren't even on. Isshin must have left in a hurry.

Now that her mind was clear enough to think she heard the noise again. This time she could understand what it was. Someone was banging on the door. The bathroom door.

She got up and ran as she ignored the blood rushing in her feet. Call it mother instincts.

She reached out in the hallway and saw Isshin backing away from the bathroom door and getting ready in a stance.

He was preparing to break down the door.

"Isshin! What are you-"

Before she could complete she heard a round of coughs and gagging emerge from the closed door in front of him. And it didn't seem like normal sound of someone throwing up. It sounded alot worse.

Isshin looked at her pleadingly and said,

"He won't open the door. I have been trying to get him to do that since 15 minutes. So I thoug-"

"Do it." Masaki said without missing a beat.

Nodding at Masaki's answer Isshin ran at the door with enough pressure and the hinges loosened with a loud creak.

Isshin caught the door before it could fall on the person inside. Carefully he removed the door and set it on the glass wall covering the bathtub.

Masaki slowly walked in and sat beside Ichigo's shivering figure and rubbed circles on his back. His light blue pajamas were soaked in sweat. Masaki bit her lip in concern as Isshin just stood beside her.

"Isshin bring some water dear. And one towel."

Isshin nodded and was back in a minute with the required items. Till now Ichigo hadn't said a word. Masaki herself felt sick for making her son go through this.

She had made sure that the food wasn't _that_ drugged.

Ichigo groaned again in pain as he ran an hand through his wet hair and kept whispering something.

"What's wrong? How do you feel?"

"I- I don't know m-mom. I don't feel great that's for su-sure"

Ichigo tensed again and then with two fingers reached for his mouth. He pulled the gag muscle and felt the food coming up again.

Masaki had to refrain from letting out a gasp. All this time she had been thinking that Ichigo had been throwing up because he felt sick.

Not purging himself.

**(Purging is very bad guys. Unless you KNOW you have eaten something you shouldn't, only then you do it. That too in someone's supervision. Never do it without a good reason. Never.)**

"Ichigo! What are you doing?! That isn't good for you! Let the food come up on it's own!" Isshin said wide eyed as he bent down and kept Ichigo's hair away from his face as he threw up again.

After another round of dry heaving Ichigo finally rested his head on the cold toilet seat as Masaki wiped the sweat on his face while Isshin flushed the toilet.

"Are you okay now?" Masaki whispered so that his headache doesn't get much worse.

Ichigo swallowed heavily before saying,

"Yeah, everything's out of the system . . . the drugs. I didn't let the drugs take effect ugh-"

Masaki was quick to cut him off and said,

"Shuush, let mom and dad take care of you first"

With that, for the next 10 minutes Isshin held the small boy in his lap as Masaki dipped the cloth in some some water and laid it on his forehead. Their concentration was on Ichigo's health but many questions were running through their minds.

They had heard Ichigo say drugs.

Ichigo also said that he had purged them out before they took effect. But why? How did he even know that? And they weren't anything even close to dangerous.

A small stomach ache that could be confused with just eating too much. Or a headache that could be confused with watching too much TV. That would be it. Nothing more that than.

But the question as to how he knew or why was still-

Suddenly they noticed Ichigo's breathing quicken. Ichigo winced in pain as he gripped Isshin's t-Shirt with one hand and his head with other.

"Ichigo, what's wrong?" Isshin whispered so that his loud voice didn't flare up the child's headache.

Ichigo whispered something that sounded like 'dim' and 'lights'.

Masaki quickly scrambled to the lights and dimmed them to an acceptable point only to find Isshin looking at him incredulously.

"He is having a migraine! Masaki, how much did you give him? I thought you said light!" Isshin whispered frantically.

"This is not because of the drugs. I am sure of it." Masaki said as she got closer to the pair.

"Then what's-"

Isshin was cut off when the whispering started. It was too quite in the bathroom to catch it but when they got closer to Ichigo's face they could hear it.

"Th-There was ferrous sul-sulphate, croscarmellose, ma-magnesium stearate, colloidal silicon . . . "

"What's all this?" Masaki asked.

She knew scientific terms but not too well. Isshin looked like he was somewhat understanding them.

"Masaki, which medicines did you give him?"

Masaki thought for a second before saying,

"Iron supplement and naproxen. Why?"

Isshin looked like he had seen a ghost and Masaki found herself getting confused again.

Was Ichigo allergic to these chemicals? But she would know about that cause they already had the kids conduct an allergy exam. So what was wrong? She needed to know! Her husband wasn't helping.

"He . . . He is . . . "

"He is what Isshin?" Masaki asked desperately.

"I don't-"

"Isshin . . . " Masaki warned.

"He is stating the chemicals used to make those drugs. It's as if he knows what was in the drugs he was given . . . "

Masaki bit her lip in worry. So in the end her suspicions were correct. This wasn't a medical problem after all.

Ichigo then weakly looked up and saw Masaki's worried expression and said,

"Don't worry mom . . . the assassins can't just kill me like that . . . they used weak drugs anyways . . . "

Masaki didn't know what to do. She couldn't even comprehend what was happening. Ichigo knew he was drugged. He purged it out before the mild drug could even take an effect. He then started telling them about the chemicals that were inside. Then he went ahead to tell them that 'those assassins' can't kill him cause they used weak drugs.

What in the world was her son talking about?

"It looks like something is wrong with him." Isshin drawled.

Masaki sharply looked up and gave him a incredulous look that said 'Are you serious?'

Isshin noticed that and said,

"Not like that . . . something spiritually"

Masaki nodded. That meant only one thing.

"I will take him. You stay here with the girls."

It was Isshin's turn to give her the look and Masaki just said,

"I can get there faster than you with Hirenkyaku"

Isshin just hung his head at that as he held Ichigo tightly. Masaki didn't want to play the power card on him now but her son needed help and he needed it now.

"Okay . . . I will watch the girls" Isshin said as he got up and now held an unconscious Ichigo in his arms.

Masaki softly smiled as she gave Isshin a light peck on his lips and took Ichigo from him.

"I will call you from there if there are any problems" Masaki said and disappeared with a flash.

Isshin stared at the spot at which Masaki stood and then shook his head and cleaned the bathroom. He exited and saw Yuzu and Karin sleeping against each other just outside the bathroom with their teddy bear clutched tightly in their small hands.

He smiled as he picked them up and took them back to their room to sleep.

While Masaki was running, from the distance she saw Urahara already sitting on the roof with a knowing look.

When she reached there she raised an questioning eyebrow. Ichigo in her hands was still panting but the look Urahara had was somehow more concerning.

"Masaki san, don't tell me you haven't sensed it?"

Masaki was confused. She was sure her sensing skills hadn't dulled that much.

"Ichigo's reiatsu, it's increasing at an incredible rate"

That's when the force of the spiritual pressure hit her. She hadn't been able to sense it because she wasn't looking for it and it wasn't that strong. She wasn't expecting anything from her son and kept an eye out for all the other reiatsu except her boy's.

Kisuke knew that Masaki had listened to him. He had a perfect lie in his mind but he knew that in a silent way, he will also have to solve the other problem.

* * *

Ichigo finally opened his eyes and saw a woman looking down at him in concern. His vision was blurry so he couldn't make out who it was.

'Who is she?' Ichigo thought.

"It's okay Ichigo. It's me, Nanao" The woman reassured.

'Am I that easy to read?'

"No Ichigo. You are just thinking out loud" Nanao said with a chuckle.

Ichigo flustered up a bit before slowly trying to get up with eventually Nanao helping him to stay upright. He winced at his sour neck, the hard ground was making his body ache.

He then tried to stand up as well but Nanao just made him sit back down and said,

"No don't, I am still healing your wounds. I am done with your leg, only your arms are remaining"

That was when Ichigo noticed her arms that were providing the all too familiar green glow to his bandaged right arm.

"Thank you"

Nanao just smiled and continued her work. Ichigo then looked around and noticed that they were back at the cave in which he had been residing for the last three months. He also saw the 5 hollows sitting at the table (the big stone which they considered was a table) grimly along with Pesche who shared the same expression.

On the wall beside them were Dondochaka and Nel who were talking about something. Nozomi was sleeping in Nel's arms peacefully.

In front of him was the opening of the cave that was letting in the desert's cool air and tranquility.

All in all it looked too much like a broken down substitute war camp used for emergencies.

He shook his head, trying to remind himself this was just a cave as the memories of a certain red head came to his mind.

"You know it took a lot to keep her off your side" Another voice said.

Ichigo whipped his head to his left and saw Shunsui sitting there casually with a bottle of sake.

Immediately his eyes went straight towards the ground. He still can't see anyone in the eye. Not yet.

"Who are you talking about?" Ichigo whispered cause his throat had went dry after lack of water for so long.

Nanao helped Ichigo sit up into a more comfortable position and handed him a cylindrical wooden water bottle. Ichigo took it using his left hand and took out the cork using his teeth as Nanao was till healing his right hand.

"That little monster of yours" Shunsui continued as he glanced at Nel who was holding the dog.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes and said,

"Her name's Nozomi. I would appreciate if you call her that."

Nanao instantly glared at Shunsui while Shunsui at least had the decency to look sheepish.

"I am healed enough. Thank you." Ichigo said as he handed her the bottle and got up swiftly.

He wobbled on his feet a little but soon the rush passed. He then walked towards Nel and Dondochaka who instantly brightened up at his sight.

Ichigo was going to say something when Nozomi jumped out of Nel's lap and tried to climb Ichigo's leg. Everyone watched silently as Ichigo did nothing and let the dog try it's best. After a while the puppy gave up as it could only reach Ichigo's knee and that too only if she jumped with her full height.

Ichigo then smiled as he picked her up and set her in his right shoulder and said,

"Well at least you tried your best"

The dull puppy wagged her tail again and licked Ichigo's face. Ichigo let out a small laugh as Nozomi continued to pick him.

Everyone just stared in awe because they had seen Ichigo laugh for the first time. Nanao and Shunsui even though had already seen it, they knew that the Ichigo who met them first wasn't the real Ichigo. This one was emotionless. Or that's what they had been thinking until now.

Ichigo then walked towards Pesche as he ignored Nel and Dondochaka who had been as happy as Nozomi to see him well. It took alot out of him to not notice Nel's frown.

The hollows who were worried sick about Ichigo's health a few seconds ago were now looking at any direction except the boy while whistling random tunes.

Ichigo shook his head and looked at Pesche. Pesche sensing the importance of the matter looked equally serious.

"I want you, Dondochaka and Nel to get strong. And make these idiots strong too if possible" Ichigo stated.

Pesche was taken back. He had been informed that Ichigo had gotten rid of almost all the capable arrancar of Las Noches except a few.

Aizen's plan, whatever it was, has been destroyed.

At least according to what he had been thinking. And apparently he was wrong.

"Why?" Was all Pesche asked.

Ichigo's eyes hardened and he said,

"You may think it's over but it's not. Not at all. Don't ask me how I know. All I want from you guys is to be prepared. You have another decade or something. I will reach out to you guys again."

It was a new sight for Pesche. To find the kid ordering him. Even in the three months the kid had been here he always stayed within his own borders but why the sudden trust in him now? Why should he even listen to him?

But even through all of that, Pesche found himself listening. Listening very carefully.

And the promise that Ichigo made sounded convincing. Too convincing. It was as if Ichigo knew when everything was going to go south.

As if he had seen it with his own eyes.

"Why did you ignore Nel like that?"

Even though he had changed the topic Ichigo knew Pesche had agreed to his first request.

"Because you can't baby her forever Pesche. She needs to be trained as well. She isn't in her full form currently, but her smaller form needs to be trained as well. I know you care about her. I do too."

Pesche widened his eyes and before he could ask Ichigo said,

"Don't ask how I know. I think you will figure it out eventually. If you don't then I will tell you someday anyways. Tell all of this to Dondochaka later."

That was when Pesche noticed how Ichigo had left Dondochaka behind so Nel doesn't feel like she is excluded out of this conversation.

So he did care about her.

"And please train in caves like these. Don't go outside much for anything other than hollow hunting. And yeah, use more light in this cave. Only one torch isn't enough."

Ichigo had been talking in a voice that would be only heard by the people around the table. So he didn't want the captain and the lieutenant to know about this?

That meant more questions for Pesche to ponder upon.

Pesche dumbly nodded and Ichigo then looked at the other five hollows.

"You heard our conversation right? Tell me your names so when we meet in the future, I will know how to identify you guys. You will probably change physically after training."

The hollows looked at eachother before saying,

"Ichi"

"Ni"

"San"

"Shi"

"Go"

Ichigo just blinked before asking,

"Your names are literally just one, two, three, four and five in Japanese?"

The hollows nodded and Ichigo just walked away after that.

He casually walked past the other two shinigami whispering a small,

"Let's go"

Nanao and Shunsui who weren't listening to Ichigo's conversation and were talking to each other looked as Ichigo walked out of the cave.

Nanao looked at Shunsui questioningly as she picked up her bag and Shunsui just shrugged in response.

They walked for 15 minutes in complete silence before they reached the spot where the garganta was going to open.

Mayuri had told Shunsui to wait at that spot so that he would sense them and open the Garganta. He didn't mention how long it would take.

* * *

Masaki was sitting outside the closed off room as Tessai and Urahara did their work.

Ichigo's spiritual pressure was leaking.

From all the things she expected, it wasn't this. But it did explain alot about why Ichigo did what he did.

His leaking spiritual pressure put him under a haze. His extremely light stomach ache and headache must have increased in strength because of this. And he must have tried to solve the problem by getting rid of his food but he didn't know that actually the food wasn't the source of the problem.

But that didn't explain how he knew the names of those chemicals in the medicine.

She had told Urahara everything and he said that Ichigo must have read the description of the medicine sometime.

But how did Ichigo know that this was the medicine she had used?

She shook her head and sighed tiredly. She can think about that later anyways. She was now worried about how Urahara was going to do what he had said he would do.

**-Flashback-**

_"Masaki san, before thinking of any methods to stop this I want to ask you something."_

_Masaki was nervous._

_The question Urahara hadn't asked yet was haunting her even though she didn't know what it was. She would do anything to protect her baby. Anything. But by the looks of it, the choice was going to be harsh._

_Masaki__ nodded and Kisuke asked,_

_"Do__ you want Ichigo to live a normal happy life or do you want him to be aware of the spirit world?"_

_Masaki's eyes widened before a smile took it's place on her face._

_"I thought the question was going to be something like life or death kind of situation. Me and Isshin had already discussed this a month ago. We don't want Ichigo to be related to the spirit world in any kind of way. Not even Yuzu and Karin. We want them to live a normal and happy life. No relations with shinigami until they actually die."_

_For some reason unknown to her Kisuke flinched but inside the man's mind a picture of another orange headed guy came, fully dressed in a shihakusho and a dual zanpaktō._

_"Okay then Masaki san, I am going to seal away Ichigo's reiatsu completely. He won't be able to see even normal ghosts much less hollows."_

_Masaki's smile widened in satisfaction and she was going to ask Kisuke if he could work on sealing away Yuzu and Karin's reiatsu as well but a tug at her shirt reminded her of her son's critical condition._

_"Please do what you have to do."_

_Kisuke nodded with determination and . . . fear?_ _Masaki shook out her anxious thoughts again as Tessai took Ichigo out of her arms and both the men walked into another room, leaving Masaki behind_

**-End Flashback-**

Inside the room, Kisuke and Tessai were having another crises.

"We will have to put a barrier around his mind and soul, right?" Urahara asked.

"Yes . . . but I don't understand why?"

At Tessai's question Kisuke took out a drawing book out of nowhere and drew two circles of same size next to each other.

"Imagine these two circles as the adult and baby Ichigo's minds or more precisely, memories. If these circles are same then there would have been no problem but that is naturally impossible for someone to travel through time and have same memories as their present selves. So taking the situation we are in, we will have one bigger circle of memories which is the adult Ichigo from future and then we will take a smaller circle which is this timeline's young Ichigo. Understanding till now?" Kisuke asked as he glanced up at Tessai who just nodded.

"Okay then. So the space beyond the circles are empty spaces that allow the memory to expand, cross, tie, disappear and more stuff like that. So obviously because the adult Ichigo's memories are more . . . they have started dominating young Ichigo's memories. So that's why-"

"Little Ichigo had the knowledge of the poisons and knew what to do in a situation like that . . . "

"Exactly. It isn't too hard to imagine that adult Ichigo would have the knowledge of poisons and steps to get rid of it. Not only that but some of adult Ichigo's instincts that prevent him from falling into traps or tricks have also transferred into young Ichigo . . . Along with some of his spiritual pressure."

That was where it got worse.

"Young Ichigo's body isn't trained to handle any kind of spiritual of his own or even . . . no, _especially_ his adult self's. So when a fully mastered reiatsu started to enter his body, his body tried its best to adapt it while having no idea it wasn't capable of doing so until they developed even one of its powers. Be it Quincy, Shinigami or Hollow." Kisuke finished grimly.

Tessai thought for a moment before saying,

"It would also explain his blunt and rebellious behaviour that he is unable to control sometimes"

Kisuke smirked remembering Isshin telling him how his 'little Ichigo' had talked back to him and put him down completely the day they had been driving back and how he wasn't even able to tell his son that he had done something wrong because the little boy was absolutely right.

This also meant that the lack of having a mother had made Ichigo the violet delinquent he was.

All of this of course had been obviously before Isshin's memories had been wiped out but oh well it was fun anyways.

"So we have to barricade young Ichigo's mind from adult Ichigo's memories and also barricade his soul from gaining adult Ichigo's spiritual pressure?"

"Yes and we are going to do it right now. We can't waste too much time. Besides, it will only take a few minutes"

"Okay boss!"

* * *

After a few more minutes of waiting in the empty desert Ichigo felt his brain throb against his skull. He frowned at the sudden pain but decided to ignore it for the time being.

"Mayuri sure is taking his sweet time" Shunsui said as he rested his hands on his waist and stared at the empty spot where the garganta was supposed to open.

"He did say that it would take 15 minutes after we reach the position" Nanao said.

"And it's been 30 minutes now" Shunsui grumbled.

Ichigo knew that Mayuri always took more than half an hour to open an Garganta. Kisuke was better at it than him. So knowing that it would take some more time Ichigo sat down on the sand as he tried to nullify his headache .

Shunsui looked at him because of his sudden movement and asked,

"Are you okay?"

"I am fine" Ichigo said as he still held on to his head.

Shunsui obviously didn't look convinced.

"Are you sure?" Nanao asked.

"Yup"

"Totally positive?" Nanao asked again.

"Yeah"

"Want me to use healing kidō on your head? It can help the headache" Nanao suggested with a grin as she saw Ichigo fluster again as he had been caught.

"I will be fine" Ichigo grumbled out as he used his own hand to use healing kidō on himself.

It wasn't as precise as Nanao's but it would work for something as small as a headache.

The fact that he can use healing kidō didn't feel like much of a suprise as they had already seen him do things a 9 year old shouldn't know. How could healing kidō suprise them?

After the headache had dulled he then started drawing circles and doodles on the sand as Nozomi watched carefully and Nanao and Shunsui sighed at his behaviour.

Even though the kid was a trained shinigami (by who they don't know) he still acted like a normal 9 year old kid.

Few more minutes passed and the silence was just too much for Shunsui. So small talk was the only option.

"So finally going back to soul society eh?"

"Hmm yeah"

Shunsui let the small response roll off as if it was nothing and asked,

"You are probably going to be asked a lot of questions, are you nervous?"

Ichigo paused in his doodling for a second before saying,

"I guess"

Shunsui let out a tired grunt and Nanao just chuckled at the scene.

"Not much of a talker are you?" Shunsui asked as he sat down as well.

"Yeah"

Shunsui rolled his eyes at the similar response and motioned Nanao to sit down as well. They sat in silence for a while but Shunsui got bored and took out a bottle of sake from nowhere and started drinking. Nanao shook her head and glared at him.

Shunsui felt the glare bore into his hat as he gave her a sheepish look. Nanao's glare intensified as she pointed at Ichigo with her eyes as if telling 'We have a kid with us!'. Shunsui just waved his hands saying 'Who cares?'.

Before she could say anything Ichigo said,

"That stuff is bad for your health you know?"

"Eh?" Shunsui didn't know what to say.

"Your liver will suffer if you continue drinking that stuff" Ichigo mumbled as he continued drawing.

"How do you know that?" Nanao asked.

"It's just one of the things I just know"

Nanao then looked at Shunsui and said,

"See? Even a kid is telling you stop. This is not a time to drink captain"

After saying that, she snatched the bottle away from him but Shunsui tried to reach out and take it back.

"Hadō 4: Byakurai"

A small blue kidō shot out from Ichigo's finger that had been doodling a second ago and the bottle which had been in Nanao's hand was now lying on ground, completely broken to bits.

Nanao gave Ichigo a satisfied smile to which Ichigo only nodded and continued to look at the ground. Shunsui pouted and gave Ichigo a light-hearted stare.

Ichigo looked at his scribbles and scowled lightly. He was never good at drawing. Even in highschool when they had to draw those stupid graphs he had sucked even though math had been his favourite. He still hated how he couldn't draw the bio diagrams when he had been in med school. Seriously though, who cared how a cockroach brea-

**"King! We have the backstory ready!"**

'Finally! I was tired of waiting around. Tell me what it is'

**_"No Ichigo. Come inside your inner world or they may read your expressions while you talk outside"_**

Ichigo nodded to himself before he took out his swords and pushed them in the sand in front of him.

Nanao and Shunsui tensed at the sudden action, Shunsui's hands moving to his own sword.

"Don't. I am just going to talk to my zanpaktō." Ichigo said as he set Nozomi down beside him so that she won't disturb him by sitting on his shoulder.

Then he got into a meditative position and closed his eyes as he felt himself being pulled into his inner world.

He opened his eyes to find himself standing on one of the buildings of his usual rainy city. In front of him Zangetsu was standing on his usual pole.

Everything was usual.

Except he found himself glaring at his white haired zanpaktō in annoyance while Shiro was grinning at him wildly.

"Why do I have a feeling I am not gonna like this?" Ichigo asked as he crossed his arms and looked at Shiro whose grin widened even more.

* * *

"Okay, the seal is ready. Now all we have to do is copy the same thing on his forehead and body and then let it do it's work. It will cut off adult Ichigo's connection to him." Kisuke said as he held up the paper that had the black seal pattern.

Tessai nodded as he started the preparations and set Ichigo on the futon beside him.

* * *

"Are you seriously considering they will accept this bullshit for an answer?" Ichigo exclaimed.

Shiro stepped back a bit as he saw Ichigo approaching with killer intent.

**_"Ichigo . . . "_**

Ichigo then looked at Zangetsu and asked,

"And how in the world did he convince you that this plan will work!?"

**_"Even I was against it at first. But in the end I had to agree it makes sense. Don't tell me that you didn't think his reasoning was correct too?"_**

Ichigo huffed and crossed his arms and said,

"Doesn't mean it sounds that great"

Zangetsu just smiled at Ichigo's childish pout before Ichigo was again thrown out of his inner world and he opened his eyes to find Shunsui and Nanao staring at him curiously.

His eyes shifted towards the ground naturally and after a few silent moments he asked,

"What?"

"Nothing. The garganta is open now, we were calling out to you but you weren't listening" Shunsui sad in an accusing tone but it wasn't harsh it just said he was amused.

"Well I was busy" Ichigo said as he looked at the now open garganta.

"We saw that" Shunsui smoothly replied.

Ichigo sighed and picked Nozomi up and got up as well.

Shunsui smirked as he knew he had irritated the boy a bit. Even though small, an achievement was an achievement.

'We haven't even met properly again and he is starting to get on my nerves . . . again' Ichigo thought.

**"Well kingy it looks like pinky hat knows how to get on your nerves even now . . . " **Shiro said.

'Shut up, I don't even wanna talk to you right now because of that stupid plan of yours'

**"But even ya know it's gonna work don't ya?" **

Ichigo scowled but said nothing and kept walking. But as usual Shiro won't shut up.

As they neared the garganta he simply decided to ignore his zanpaktō. As he was going to step inside the garganta he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

He stopped his reflexes to roundhouse kick the person in the face and brought down the leg that was now just inches away from Nanao's face. The woman didn't even flinch as if she had been expecting this to happen.

But Ichigo didn't fail to notice how Shunsui had his hands gripped around his zanpaktō.

"What is it?" Ichigo asked as he took a step away from Nanao to show he was unhostile.

Nanao said nothing as she just looked at him. Ichigo followed her eyes and saw that she was looking at Nozomi.

He narrowed his eyes and said,

"If you even think for a second that I am going to leave her behind then you are free to try to do so"

The threat didn't faze Shunsui much and he said,

"No, we guessed you weren't going to leave her behind. We were looking at you because if you don't know how to create foot spaces in garganta then Nozomi will fall over along with you into an endless dimension"

Ichigo relaxed at the explanation. At least now he knew he won't have to fight his way into Soul Society just for bringing in a hollowified puppy.

Looking at Shunsui's feet he said,

"I can make foot spaces efficiently. If anything, let me walk in front of you cause I am already injured and if we are ambushed then you guys would be in perfect health to fight"

Shunsui looked at Ichigo to make out if the boy was serious or not. But seeing the same look he had been seeing for the past few hours he asked,

"Who would ambush us Kurosaki?"

Ignoring how Shunsui didn't use his first name Ichigo said,

"Anyone can, what if . . . "

He trailed off, realising that no one could ambush them inside the garganta. At least not in this timeline. Quincy could live in pocket dimensional spaces but they won't attack until a few years later.

"Fine, you guys can walk in front and I will walk behind you" Ichigo muttered as he stepped back allowing the captain and lieutenant to walk in front.

* * *

**At the same time in Karakura town.**

"The seals have been drawn boss" Tessai notified as he stood up and gazed silently at the child's weak body before looking at Kisuke who was doing the same.

"Then let's seal it up. From now, this timeline's Kurosaki Ichigo won't be able to see ghosts, his spiritual pressure will be unsealed only after his death, no Quincy, no shinigami, no hollow, nothing. This Kurosaki Ichigo will live a normal life"

Tessai stared at Kisuke for a few more seconds before he was sure that his boss wanted to do this. But when the face of the other Ichigo came into his mind, he gave up his doubts.

He would do anything to prevent something like that from happening to this boy.

Tessai nodded as he formed some hand signs while Kisuke started doing the same. Their palms turned bright purple as they suddenly kneeled and planted the purple light over Ichigo's head.

The two pairs of hands remained in that position until the black scribble like pattern that was displayed all over the boy's body, faded away with a strong gust of wind that knocked over Kisuke's hat.

Kisuke silently picked up his hat and stared at it as if it was some sort of bad omen.

"So it's done . . . "

"Yes boss"

Kisuke dipped his head as he put on his hat and said,

"I am going to bed. Tell Masaki san she can bring Yuzu and Karin tomorrow"

Tessai lifted the now peacefully asleep boy and nodded as he exited the room.

* * *

"Kurosaki?" Nanao asked.

Ichigo heard the voice as he shook his head to clear the sudden blood rush and said,

"I am fine"

"You sure? A small headache shouldn't last that long and you kinda lost yourself there"

"It's probably nothing, just a blood rush"

Nanao looked skeptical but said nothing as she continued towards the direction her captain was walking, with Ichigo following her shortly.

'What was this? That wasn't a dizzy spell, I am sure. It felt like, uh like a very small headache? It was a strong one but it just lasted for 3 seconds?' Ichigo asked his zanpaktō.

**_"Even I am not able to figure out what happened. Nothing seems to be wrong with you . . . actually it looks like your energy is draining at a slower rate. It's as if you are now-"_**'

'-complete' Ichigo said for his zanpaktō.

* * *

"The sealing is complete." Tessai said as he handed Ichigo over to Masaki who adjusted him on her back before giving Kisuke a grateful look.

Kisuke just waved his hand with a smile but then got serious and said,

"I know you want Yuzu and Karin to be sealed as well. But are you still sure? Ichigo's seal can be removed if it's under the 24 hours of being applied. So if you change your min-"

Kisuke was cut off by Masaki's,

"I am damn sure about this"

Kisuke looked at her again to catch any signs of doubt he might find but finding none he sighed and just walked back in.

Tessai sent her an apologetic look and said,

"He just thinks it might be unsafe for Ichigo if he is ever attacked by a hollow and he won't be able to protect himself"

Masaki nodded in understanding and said,

"That is what me and Isshin are here for. We will protect our kids from this until we die. And as for when we die, we can go to soul society and with Isshin's previous position as a captain we can send temporary protection for Ichigo. If they refuse we will just inform them how Ichigo can be used as a weapon if fallen into wrong hands. They will immediately come to his aid. I mean, he has three types of reiatsu mixed in his blood . . . "

"You seem to have planned everything out very nicely?"

Masaki smiled again as she started to walk out and said,

"Well I don't want my child to fall into the hands of soul society and become nothing but a weapon"

'How ironic' Tessai thought as he saw Masaki's retreating figure disappear in a flash of Hirenkyaku.

* * *

**"King, it's time. It will take only a second and we will be okay. At least until we remove it."**

Ichigo nodded before he observed if Nanao and Shunsui in front of him were watching or not.

Finding no eyes on him besides Nozomi's who was on his shoulder, Ichigo formed a all to familiar Shihouin clan hand sign.

* * *

**Okay so guys I KNOW this chapter is short but the part that was coming next would be better suited for a new chapter so yeah! A few surprises coming up in the next chapter so be prepared!**

* * *

**THIS IS A RANT SO READ IF YOU WANT INSIGHT OF THE FUTURE BUT IF YOU DON'T THEN IT'S FINE~**

**And**** as to why I was so late in posting this: I had actually been reading some good time travel fics to understand the gist of this cause time travel is new to me too lol.**

**And**** I also wanted to read some Naruto fics. PLEASE KNOW THAT I AM NOT INCORPORATING NARUTO (ANIME) INTO THIS SO HEAR ME OUT.**

**Okay, as to why I was doing this is because I wanted to know something about stealth and stuff. I know nothing about Naruto (anime) but I don't live under a rock so I know the basic characters and enemies and their characteristics and stuff like shinobi/ninja or team 7 or Kakashi or Hokage and everything in it. But I know that because of the fanfics I have read these past few days and that is because I needed to know about weapons BESIDES zanpaktō. As you know our boy Ichigo is bad at stealth . . . that might be an understatement. So yeah, I know nothing of Naruto (anime) but I know Naruto fanfics and I am going to incorporate their idea of stealth into this.**

**PLEASE**** DON'T JUMP ON ME : (**

* * *

**REPLIES:**

**XxxgoblinslayerXD69: I cannot thank you ENOUGH for this comment! I was actually wondering if writing is worth it at all but when I see comments like these I am like, "You know what? I should write for the people who are reading this and want to know what happens cause nobody other than me will end this story the way I am thinking". And I think Nozomi will probably not evolve cause she won't have access to hollows in soul society but only reiatsu. So she would grow like a pup but not evolve into a larger hollow series . . . probably? I am still not sure lmao. And I can assure you Urahara is getting so bodied the next time Ichigo sees him XD. And I will do my best to take care of myself and complete this story!!**

**Zeynel: Thank you SO much! And you are right, there are going to be some complications now because of the reveal of Hueco Mundo but we will have to see how it goes!**

**Cylyase: Thank you so much! I will keep writing : )**

**rick001: Actually there are currently two Ichigo existing! So the Ichigo in Hueco Mundo is the one who has time travelled while the one in Karakura town is this timeline's Ichigo who adult Ichigo had saved the day he had arrived in Karakura!**

**hadatko28: Thank you so much! I hope the next chapters also have the same reaction from your side!! : )**

**777torn777: Actually Espadas have been brutally murdered if you haven't got the gist because most of them were drastically low on their power levels than their future selves who were fully evolved. More hollows will surely evolve again as they pace up cause Ichigo didn't kill all the hollows of Hueco Mundo because that ain't possible. So I guess the position of the previous arrancars will be handled by the new ones . . . UGH I don't know : ( But I will surely sort it out XD**

**DiamondCutterTM: Thank you so SO much!**

**NaMaloom: Okay my guy lol chill : )**


	11. Chapter 11

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

* * *

His hands were twitching at each and every sound that was made inside the small room.

The wind rustling against the clothes of the two Onmitsukidō members who stood their guard in front of him, their soft breathing, the rustling of plants outside, the movement of more Onmitsukidō members outside or even the movement of the small black ants on the walls. Anything, was making him tense for an attack.

After all he didn't have good experience with being held captive.

He didn't know how he had ended up in this situation.

He had formulated a plan and followed it to the end. He had told them only what was necessary or supposedly what they needed to know and of course he had expected a reaction out of them. But he hadn't been expecting it to be this harsh.

. . .

Okay, so maybe he _did _know how he had ended up in this situation.

He unconsciously rubbed his neck where his Gentei reiin was still pulsing small amounts of reiatsu as a beacon for someone to come to his rescue.

It was obvious this was supposed to happen when he had activated the Shihoin clan seal over his Gentei reiin.

* * *

**-Flashback-**

_The captains meeting or simply the head captain's room was a bit different than he remembered as the room had caught his attention a little bit too much. It was mostly same but now instead of the wooden bindings that had acted as a wall during captain meetings, there was a big purple translucent curtain._

_The curtain wasn't the only thing different. The room even smelled like lavender._

_When he was entering the room he had to swallow a lump of surprise in his throat. The room's design looked too similar to the soul king's room design._

_"Speak boy" Yamamoto said from his position on his all too familiar throne._

_Ichigo continued to look at his feet, feeling like the child he was physically, but didn't waver. Which he should have considering he was currently surrounded by all the captains of the Gotei 13, who were waiting for an acceptable answer._

_And one of them was Aizen._

_He had to bite his lips to use the pain and distract himself from just flashstepping there beheading the man himself._

_"And don't you dare disobey the orders of the head captain child. You have done soul society a favour by eliminating the potential threats that were living in Hueco Mundo but we won't restraint from killing you if you are a threat to us as well" Komomura said sharply but Ichigo knew the man long enough to tell what he was trying to convey._

_'Don't raise their temper and get this over with or else they might harm you' was the 7th squad captain's message._

**"Guess your cuteness as a chibi had rubbed off on all the others king~"**

_Ichigo ignored his hollow's comment __on his height and__ nodded at the man . . . wolf? He still didn't know what Komomura actually was so let's just go with man._

_Besides, he wasn't supposed to know what was beneath the man's bucket mask anyways._

_"I would tell you everything I know but . . . I can't"_

_Yamamoto narrowed his eyes as they bore holes in his head while he kept staring at his feet. Ichigo felt his body stiffen and his grip around Nozomi who was whining in his arms tightened under Yamamoto's glare, which wasn't suprising._

_However stronger Ichigo may have become or however number of years of future he may have seen, Head Captain still knew how to terrify him down to his bone. It was one of the man's qualities he had always admired the most._

_"Why is it you cannot speak boy?" Came Byakuya's cold response and Ichigo swore he could feel Byakuya eyeing Nozomi in disgust._

_Ichigo sent a small amount of spiritual pressure towards Byakuya as he wrapped his hands around Nozomi into a more protective position._

_But he couldn't help but sigh at the scene. This was just so . . . different. How__ different was this Byakuya than the Byakuya of the future? The one who trusted his life in the hands of his fellow arrancars in the battlefield._

_Ichigo wandered back to the question that was asked to him and after thinking for a second he said,_

_"I may be able to explain what's happening through some facts about myself but you will need to have patience and I would request you to not interrupt me while I speak . . . "_

_Ichigo's tone held a questioning end and he couldn't even look up to gauge their expressions._

**_"We will have to do something about your lack of eye contact" _**_Zangetsu muttered in his mind but his voice lacked urgency, telling Ichigo that Zangetsu was okay with this behaviour for now at least._

_"How will we know you are not lying?" It was Ukitake who had asked this surprisingly._

_Ichigo's gaze shifted across the wooden floor then towards Ukitake's feet as he held a finger under his chin, thinking of what to respond._

_Ichigo knew there were many other ways they could make sure he was not lying and if he was being honest with himself, he wouldn't like to be interrogated using those methods._

_He still had the advantage of their respect, not trust but at least respect._

_They respected him because he had not only informed them that there are more serious threats out there but also he had helped a great deal in getting rid of some of them._

_"Well . . . I simply cannot" Ichigo decided this was the best answer he could give._

_There was a long pause and Ichigo feared that they might actually decline hearing his explanation at all but-_

_"Fine then. Do what you must and we will decide if the answer is worth it or not"_

_He had to stop himself from doubling up with the relief that had washed over him. All of a sudden he seemed tired, as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders._

_Ichigo nodded as he picked Nozomi up and set her on his left shoulder. Nozomi made a move towards Ichigo's face and everyone tensed at the hollowified puppy's movement only to relax a bit as they saw the puppy casually lick Ichigo who tried his best not smile at the ticklish feeling._

_Ichigo then slightly tilted his head upwards, looking at Yamamoto's staff instead of his feet. Those around the room knew how the boy had been looking down all the time so they naturally straitened up when he looked up a bit. They knew whatever was coming, it was serious_.

_"Okay then . . . so I think I should start with the fact that I am a Shiba"_

_Everyone's eyes widened, even Yamamoto was using both of his eyes to watch the boy carefully and that was when Ichigo missed being tall._

**"That was _very_ subtle king" **_Shiro commented dryly._

_Before anyone could speak . . . if they could at this point, Ichigo continued,_

_"The Shiba clan, at least to my knowledge, has been scattered throughout soul society and even though it still stands strong and takes in most of its members that come back, many still remain outside of it. I guess that I belong to those outside of it."_

_"But I don't know anything about who my parents are but there is one thing I can tell you, that the one who made me or experimented on me since I was a baby, was a Shihoin."_

_Soi-fon tensed. She was catching on where this conversation was going to go. Byakuya also narrowed his eyes. Nobody knew how this boy could have known about the Shihoin clan or the Shiba clan so him lying was also a big question mark._

_"The only knowledge I have of my maker is that it was a 'he', a 'Shihoin' and someone who belongs to squad eight"_

_"I may have more knowledge about my maker or his plan stored somewhere inside my brain but the thing is . . . I can't access it"_

_Unohana raised and eyebrow and asked,_

_"I thought you recovered from amnesia?"_

_Ichigo shook his head and said,_

_"I did recover. However my maker, who was a Shihoin, has placed his squad's Gentei Reiin on me as well as the Shihoin clan's secrecy seal over it."_

_Shunsui sighed as he understood why Ichigo had a Gentei reiin without records. But he didn't find having an experimental maniac on his squad an amusing thing._

_Soi-fon looked at Ichigo in shock and asked,_

_"You mean the ones that the clan used on their assassins?!"_

_Ichigo nodded grimly, at least he tried to look grim._

_The Shihoin clan was directly connected to squad 2 and the Onmitsukidō. Their speed and stealth abilities weren't the only reason for that. The clan had seals. Seals like homing signals or seals that protected their assasins so if they get caught, the information they have won't get leaked._

_"This seal doesn't allow me access to memories that might cause harm to my maker. And the reason I have to think so much before talking is because I don't know if the memory access part about the seal is true or not. So if the things I know is actually, in reality, everything I know, then I may reveal something harmful to 'him' "_

_Ichigo paused to take a deep breath and then said,_

_"And if in any way the information I reveal will harm 'him' then I will . . ._

**_self destruct"_**

_Shunsui's head snapped to Ichigo's direction and he incredulously asked,_

_"So you will commit suicide?"_

_Ichigo again shook his head as if he was tired of this._

_"No I won't but I will surely go Ka-Boom" Ichigo said and used his arms to gesture what may look like a rainbow but was depicting a blast._

_Noticing the silence Ichigo decided to continue,_

_"And one thing I am sure of . . ."_

_Feeling the curious eyes on him Ichigo said,_

_"I was created to only do harm to hollows that might deem dangerous to Soul Society, World Of The Living or Hueco Mundo in any way"_

_"So whoever your maker is, he is just an ally of Soul Society but in a dark and twisted way?" Toshiro asked sarcastically but the sarcasm wasn't quite felt throughout the silent room._

_"In a way yes."_

_"So you are a Shiba child who was experimented upon by a Shihoin so that you can be used as a weapon for Soul Society?"_

_It was Aizen who asked this and his expression was formed from pity._

_But Ichigo knew better than to fall into that trap._

_The look Aizen was giving him was actually full of gleeful curiosity and the man was already conducting maniac scientific experiments on Ichigo before the child's own eyes. Ichigo felt sick dread spread throughout his body at the thought of losing an arguement against Aizen right now._

_As if he was going to let that happen that easily._

_"Not as a weapon. My custody falls into the hands of the Shiba clan and it is their decision, as to what should be done with me" Ichigo said firmly._

_Aizen seemed to be taken back by the response but before he could say anything Ichigo said,_

_"To test whether I am from the Shiba clan or not, you can test my blood"_

_And Aizen stopped at that. Currently Shunsui and Nanao had not informed Yamamoto of Las Noches's (the castle part, not the arrancar part) development. And by the looks of it they weren't going to do that in the presence of all the captains._

_Yamamoto stroked his beard for a moment before saying,_

_"I want all the records of the Shihoin clan members who are or were present in squad 8 since the last 10 years and I want this child's blood to be examined to clarify if he is from the Shiba clan or not. Then I want another loyal Shihoin to examine if there is indeed a seal over the boy's Gentei reiin"_

_Then he looked at Ichigo and said,_

_"This boy will be kept under seireitei's custody in squad 2 until he is proved to be a Shiba clan member. Until then his zanpaktō will also be taken away from him-"_

_Mayuri smiled gleefully but scowled when Yamamoto continued,_

_"-but no experimentation will be conducted on his blades until he is proved to be not a member of the Shiba, Cause if he is, then experimentation on his zanpaktō will require the clan head's permission"_

_"Also, this boy hasn't become a shinigami yet so his shihakusho will be taken away as well and stored until he actually attends the academy to become one. And that will be also only allowed if . . . he really is a Shiba" and with that Yamamoto narrowed his eyes and Ichigo quickly flinched_.

_Ukitake sighed at his sensei's anxiousness but considering the situation he couldn't argue much anyways. He too would have done what the old man was doing._

_"And that hollow will be taken away from you" Yamamoto ended the conversation at that._

_At least he had expected the conversation to end._

_"No."_

_Everyone looked at the boy, especially Yamamoto who was considering he didn't hear right._

_"Sorry what?" He inquired._

_"I said no. Nozomi stays with me."_

_Yamamoto now looked pissed and that was understatement of the day. He seemed furious. Ichigo guessed today was one of Yamamoto's bad days._

_"You will listen to me at once child and leave that creatu-"_

_"-her name's Nozomi and she will go where I will go. Wanna separate her from me? Then kill me now." Ichigo muttered coldly._

_Kenpachi stared at the kid with a bit of admiration. He was sure the kid wasn't the same since the last time he had seen him_.

_But the kid sounded stupid as well._

_Nobody challenged Yamamoto and lived to tell the tale. Not even Kenpachi himself could do that._

_"Boy, you are challenging the head captain of soul society. I will not refrain from killing you at any second of the day" Yamamoto warned as he stood up._

_Everyone around the room was ready to jump into action if needed. Their hands on their hilts. Clan matters may go to hell. If their head captain was threatened then they will be by his side._

_"So a head captain is scared of a hollowified puppy now?" Ichigo asked with a smirk._

_But there was something more irksome behind that child's smile. It made them seem like fools for even trying to challenge the kid while the kid was only having fun. It made them almost look away._

_'Shiro, stop sharing your reiatsu. It's making my smirk creepy' Ichigo thought._

_The head captain increased his spiritual and everyone was sure lieutenants were having trouble breathing outside of the room._

_But the kid looked unfazed as he held his ground and the smirk still plastered over his face. It really was irksome indeed._

_The one sided spiritual pressure contest continued on for another 3 minutes. The kid not breaking a sweat while Yamamoto increasing his spiritual bit by bit. After a while though Yamamoto stared at the boy's form, trying to find a clue as to whether the boy was giving up or not. Not finding any signs like these, Yamamoto sighed and sat back on his chair._

_"What would happen if that creature harms someone?" He asked with a calculative gaze._

_Ichigo's smirk long gone was replaced by a determined look and he said,_

_"This 'creature', is a dog and her name is Nozomi. If anything happens then it will be my responsibility."_

_Yamamoto just reclined his head back and said nothing but Ichigo knew it was a delicate yes. Nozomi them jumped down from Ichigo's shoulders and started walking. Nobody said a word as the most powerful people in the three dimensions stared at a puppy walk up to Yamamoto._

_Everyone was ready in an almost unnoticeable attack stance besides Ichigo and Shunsui who were already habitual to Nozomi's antics._

_Yamamoto just looked at Nozomi questioningly as she stared at him. Then she started sniffing his leg and the man just raised an unintrested eyebrow. Before he could say anything the puppy started licking his feet. In a way, even though she couldn't speak, her gesture seemed like a thank you._

_An awakward silence surrounded the room. Ichigo not being able to say anything cause it wasn't like Nozomi was doing something wrong, Yamamoto not interested to say anything and the others not able to say anything because of the embarrassment. Embarrassment that they were thinking this small hollow could harm the head captain of soul society._

_The door opened to break the uneasy moment suddenly and two Onmitsukidō walked in, clad in their assasination uniform. One was male and the other female._

_Then they suddenly kneeled and said,_

_"We are here to keep Kurosaki Ichigo under custody until his innocence is proven. And as informed by the hell butterfly, we have also brought with us the Shihoin that will examine his seal."_

_Yamamoto nodded and looked at the boy but the boy seemed to be distracted._

_'I have heard that voice somewhere . . . ' Ichigo thought as the woman spoke._

_"Well what are you waiting for?" Ukitake asked._

_Ichigo was brought out of his thoughts as he whispered a small apology and started walking towards the pair._

_"Boy, did you forget about Nozomi already?" Yamamoto said as he ran a hand over his face, tired of the situation._

_Ichigo gave a very small sheepish smile as he walked towards Yamamoto and held out an arm towards the puppy who was still licking the old man's feet._

_Nozomi climbed up his arms to rest on his shoulder and Ichigo turned around to walk towards the pair again._

_"By the way boy, that's not a dog-"_

_Ichigo stopped midway as Yamamoto continued._

_"-that's a fox"_

_Ichigo quickly took hold of Nozomi and held her in front of him, wide eyed._

_"Eh?!"_

* * *

So yeah, that's how it went.

Now he was sitting in a dark wooden room which had one small window that led to an forest and a steel door, outside which there were probably 30 Onmitsukidō. Then there were also a barrier around his room that didn't allow him to even try to open the door. And even inside his room there were two people, the ones who had so graciously 'escorted' him. He was basically thrown into this room.

They had taken away his zanpaktō and shihakusho only to give him a loose dark blue ankle length pants and an plain white t-shirt. They were considerate and decided to leave his shinigami sandals with him.

He didn't even know how soul society got their hands on human clothes. He knew clans wore different clothing than shinigami but even those aren't this close to normal human clothing. These weren't even clan clothing.

He was just glad that both, his pants and t-shirt are made of a cotton blend that is stretchable. It has been a long time since he had wore anything similar to denim so he didn't know what he would have done if they had gave him jeans to put on cause he hated those. If he ever could wear them, he probably won't cause they would be a hindrance if he has to fight.

He drew one knee towards himself and ran his finger over the fabric. He observed the looped stitches on the pant. He remembered Uryu telling him something about loop stitches being more stretchable or something. It used 45% cotton and . . . what was it? He couldn't remember.

He shook his head, he sounded like Uryu. It wouldn't be bad to sound like him but not when he ranted about fabrics and stitches. That was just plain weird.

But even when Ichigo had found it weird, he had always found himself listening to Uryu when he went on these rants. It was just something he did.

He never knew why back at war but now he knew.

It showed him how their conversations would have normally gone if it wasn't for the war.

Again he threw those thoughts away. This time everyone was going to be alive. They would talk like that, soon enough.

He looked at the pant again. He didn't know why but this piece of fabric was catching his attention. He somehow thought something was wrong with it.

He sighed. At least he would be able to move around and will have his flexibility just in case he needed to escape.

Just in case.

His attention went back to the fabric. He scowled. Something was wrong with this piece of cloth and he didn't know wh-

Nozomi climbed into his lap, he saved the fabric mystery for later as he gave the pupp- fox, a small smile.

"You couldn't have told me you were a fox could you?" He asked and Nozomi just got comfortable and began to fall asleep.

He was such an idiot to assume Nozomi was a dog. Now that he payed close attention, he could see the red fur growing somewhere in between the mass of the light brown fur. He even noticed the slightly long tail and the pointed nose.

Nozomi was a red fox and here he thought he had a puppy with him all this time.

"An animal cannot talk" the Onmitsukidō woman said.

He looked up suddenly. He had completely forgotten these two were still in this room. It had been hours since he was locked in here. He didn't even know which one was the lady cause they cover their faces and wear the same clothes.

"I know that" He grumbled.

He currently has a lot of time on his hands. Most probably a few hours more. He could rest but he cannot sleep without being overly tired so even trying would be of no use. So the only other option was to do some thinking.

**(This is the part I will explain almost everything about his seal guys so read carefully cause even I find it confusing lmao)**

His seal had become a homing signal. It was sending out small pulses of reiatsu that only he and the one who had applied the seal could feel.

Some of the Shihoin clan's secret techniques involve mind protection seals. They were made mainly for squad 2 members cause they usually did infiltration, information gathering or assasination missions. But almost everyone had this seal during the war. This Shihoin seal became a common knowledge and could be used by anyone unlike right now, where only few Shihoin members and squad 2 members and Gotei 13 know about it.

He also had one applied on him the second the war had started. If he is caught then he won't go 'Ka-boom' as he had told but nobody could try and enter his memories through his mind. They would just be pushed back out.

And when the seal is activated, it will also become a homing signal and the wall inside his brain will be pulled up. He didn't know how the wall looked like cause he never tried to enter his mind, which was apparently supposed to be different than his inner world. He would only enter if some else tries to enter, he didn't find it necessary to view his memories right now.

He again tried to remember who was the one who put this one on him. He knew it wasn't a Shihoin clan member but that's it. He knew that whoever this person was, he or she won't actually feel the pulse like they were supposed to. If they did then they would follow it and come to rescue him.

So someone coming for him or even feeling this seal was a big no.

Suddenly he heard something from the door and instantly got to his feet and in a position to strike. The other two in his room had kunai's in their hands in instants. If he had expected them to aim those kunai at the door's direction he would be kidding himself.

He wearily ran a hand over his face and with a second glance at the kunai pointed at him he said,

"I think I heard something outside. You guys can put down your weapons"

The two Onmitsukidō were going to retort but then the door flung open and a normal shinigami walked in.

"Kurosaki Ichigo has been requested in the meeting room again for the hearing of consequences of his acts" The shinigami mumbled as he walked out, expecting Ichigo to follow him.

Which Ichigo did.

He may not like to be seen as a suspect for the same place he had been serving for the last 12 years but he couldn't dare to blame them cause it wasn't their fault a 10 year old shows up out of nowhere and is as strong as a low ranking lieutenant.

* * *

**-In the world of the living-**

A 9 year old girl woke up with a gasp and drenched in sweat. She looked around the room wearily, looking for something but not knowing what.

She yanked off the sheets and rushed towards her bedroom window. She opened it to let the cool mid night air in and stared at the moon in peace.

But she didn't feel what she always felt as she continued to watch the moon for the next few minutes.

Unknowingly she ran a hand through her long hair before closing the window and walking back to her bed. She didn't know why but after her nightmares she always felt that looking at the moon would help her calm down.

For some reason looking up at the same scenery today didn't help. Somehow it felt different.

As if today she had done something that wasn't enough.

* * *

"Kurosaki Ichigo" Yamamoto said and soon every single person's attention in the meeting room was on the old man.

Ichigo said nothing as he stood attentively and stared at the floor, Nozomi silently sitting on his left shoulder.

"Your blood has been tested and it has been said that," Yamamoto paused so that he could observe the boy's reaction.

Ichigo tensed. He _knew _he was a Shiba but the way Yamamoto was saying it, made him rethink his own heritage.

**"Now that's just stupid king****. You can't stop being a Shiba just because old man says so"**

Ichigo could practically feel his zanpaktō roll their eyes at his antics. He felt rolling his eyes at himself too. Why he was even doubting himself was a question he couldn't answer.

Even though he wasn't a kid but a grown up teenager in reality, he sure was behaving like a kid.

"-you really are a Shiba."

There were several sharp intakes of breath at the reveal, including Ichigo himself doing so.

As if not noticing this, Yamamoto continued,

"So hereby you will be returned to the Shiba clan as the Central 46 has no say in clan matters."

Ichigo nodded, still deep in thought. But the head captain spoke up again.

"However it cannot be ignored that you have Shinigami powers even though you haven't been registered yet"

Ichigo nodded again. He knew he had no say in the decision currently. Not everything was supposed to go his way. It never had in the last 12 years, why would it now?

"The Shiba clan members, including the head of the clan will not be informed of your honed abilities. We will make sure of that."

Ichigo just ignored the question of how they were going to do that, saving it for later and focused what the old man was going to say next.

"Your zanpaktō will be given to the head of the Shiba clan to keep until you decide to enter the Shinigami academy and become a official Shinigami. The only reason we are actually giving your zanpaktō's custody to the clan head is because you will die from reiatsu exhaustion if you aren't near your zanpaktō for at least a hour a day."

Ichigo felt his eyebrows rise up in confusion at the last statement. He was sure that the time required for a full recharge was-

"-we know that you might be confused as to how the time is so less."

Suprisingly it was Unohana that had interrupted.

"Your reiatsu will be suppressed by a seal that only we will know how to undo, not even the Shiba clan head will do. Besides having your zanpaktō, the Shiba Clan will know nothing about your talents and they will think you are just a normal civilian member. We don't want you to be around your zanpaktō too much. Safety of soul society is something the clan members can't interfere with" Unohana's tone held an sharp edge to it which was directed at him and Ichigo did nothing but agree with her behaviour.

Safety of soul society is something not even he would want someone to interfere with, especially on his watch.

"And information about your maker is still being searched through squad 8's database as not many Shihoins join a squad other than squad 2" Soi-fon said, her doubts against the boy still crystal clear.

Everyone was silent for a minute as they waited for the boy to ask questions if he had any. But they weren't expecting him to, considering all the rules they had put upon his head.

But of course the boy indeed had caught on to their twisting.

"You said the Shiba clan members will think I am a normal person, not a shinigami. How is that?"

Shunsui smirked as he pulled down his hat to cover his expression. He couldn't help but feel kind of proud. From all of this nonsense Yamamoto has spouted the only questionable decision was this one and it was hard to spot it in that long speech. But the kid didn't seem to have a problem with doing so easily.

"You catch on fast child. Your status as an experiment will be given to the clan head. But they won't know what kind of experiment. All they will know is that you are an failed dual zanpaktō experiment and you have no talent at using those swords or even fight hand-to-hand. According to them you will have nothing besides having high spiritual pressure and those zanpaktō. To them you will just be a civilian." Yamamoto pressed hard on the last two sentences, as if making sure Ichigo understood what he had to do.

**"_Something seems to be wrong with the situation Ichigo._"** Ichigo totally agreed with his zanpaktō.

Ichigo put a finger under his chin as he considered the settings. This was the most suitable environment he could have asked for. He could easily work with it.

Things were going easy. Too easy.

But he nodded anyways, wanting to observe where this goes.

"Okay then. A Shiba clan member has already taken your zanpaktō to the clan's quarters. Your reiatsu suppressing seal will be applied by Sajin Komomura, the captain of squad 7" Yamamoto continued.

Just as he said that, Sajin Komomura stepped out of his line as he walked towards Ichigo.

Ichigo stayed in his spot in the center of the room calmly but his mind was going through millions and millions of scenarios at once. Something was definitely missing and he needed to know what it was before the seal was applied.

As Komomura knelt down to the Ichigo's level started chanting the spell for the seal with his hand over Ichigo's already two layered seal, Ichigo still was thinking of the situation.

He _knew_ soul society wouldn't just let anyone wander off into a clan like that. Even though the Shiba clan was full of strong members, he still doubted so much trust to be put on him.

There were conditions on his head, yes, but they didn't seem like enough. Like a exam offer, zanpaktō ban and a seal? That's it?

Nobody could be let off with just a seal-

His eyes widened.

How could he have not reliased this sooner?

Nobody could be let off with just a seal but what if the seal was all that was needed?

His eyes shifted from his own small feet to Komomura's helmet. He couldn't meet the man's eyes so that was enough.

"How much spiritual pressure does the seal decrease from my current reserves?"

Ichigo noticed Komomura's chanting stop for a second before the man continued as if Ichigo hadn't asked something.

'Guys, any opinion?' Ichigo asked his zanpaktō.

But he received no response. It wasn't that they were ignoring him and telling him to solve this by himself, no it clearly wasn't that.

It was as if he wasn't able to connect to his zanpaktō at all.

That was all the confirmation he needed.

He reached out to hold Komomura's wrist with his left hand only for the man to flick his small hand away using his larger hand and continue with his chant.

Ichigo was going to reach out again but was stopped by a burning sensation on his neck.

And that was an understatement.

His seal burned as if someone had poured melted iron over it. He let out an agonizing scream as the burning continued and some captains flinched but others kept looking at the scene coldly.

And then suddenly he felt his body get extremely cold as his reiatsu was pulled from each section of his body, from every cell of his, to that specific point on his neck.

He could do nothing but hopelessly see through his blurred vision as he fell forward only for the masked captain to catch him and set him down on the floor gently. He saw Nozomi lick his face, alarmed by her master's ragged breathing. Ichigo tried to reach out with his hand to hold her but he found that he couldn't move an inch. Nozomi kept whining continuosly and he again felt the need to want to get up and make sure that they didn't do anything to her.

But he was only able to make out Komomura pick Nozomi up gently and also felt himself being picked up as well.

He heard the head captain say,

"Take him to the Shiba guy waiting outside"

All he saw were the open hall gates before he completely passed out. His body not able to respond at all with most of it's spirit energy gone.

* * *

**Okay so I know this chapter is a bit short but the next one is gonna be too long so I had to cut some parts from this and put it into the next one, sorry!**

**A BIG SURPRISE COMING UP IN THE NEXT CHAPTER AND IT DEPENDS ON YOU, WETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT HAHAHA I AM EVIL~**

* * *

**REPLIES:**

**OmegaRealism: Honestly dude, I don't care about your hate unless it's constructive criticism. You might hate Orihime and Hinata but why should_ I _care about your opinion unless it's something useful anyways? And please improve your English as well cause you will need it to write a story similar to this, considering you hate mine so much : )**

**lachyfrost: Okay so you think Ichigo seems stupid in the _first_ chapter? Please read the rest and then comment. I don't wanna respond to the hate in your comment so there is that.**

**Taboada666: Honestly I had to use Google translate on this cause I don't know_ any _Spanish lmao So anyways thank you for the compliment!!**

**Bellator Kurosaki: I had to use Google Translate on your comment too! Haha I don't know Spanish at all XD but thank you anyways! And no, I don't plan on having a Yourichi X Ichigo cause in my opinion Yourichi is Ichigo's teacher lol **


	12. Chapter 12

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**About**** the pairings, I wanted to discuss this as there are a lot of comments on pairings. First of all, there is no Yaoi. It's not like I am against it, I just don't know how to write them and in my opinion (my opinion guys, MY) I think Ichigo was as straight as a line can be. I think the chances of me doing an Ichihime pairing in this fic are only 25%. Yes, I know in the last timeline Ichigo's wife was Orihime (even in the original manga and the story made by me) but I have some VALID reasons that are completely interconnected with the story plot, that might lead to the Ichihime pairing not being official in this timeline. But nothing is sure : (**

**I am discussing pairings now cause I don't want people to get further in the story and get disappointed : (**

**Replies in the end btw~**

**Ciao**** : )**

* * *

_"Run ahead Keigo! Catch up with Byakuya and ask him if he needs backup!"_

_Keigo, now almost as tall as Ichigo, clad in loose red ankle length pants and a green t-shirt used his ninjato to strike an ending blow on the hollow in front of him before strapping the blade into its sheath on his_ back.

_Then__ he turned back to Ichigo and gave him the most incredulous look he could muster._

_"But didn't you just say that I should leave Byakuya alone cause he could handle himself?!" Keigo asked as he ran a hand through his sweaty hair._

_Keigo_, _now finished__ fighting his set of hollows and decided to wait on the dry battle ground as Ichigo didn't bother to reply to him._

_Keigo's eyes travelled to the far side of the battlefield where Byakuya had run off to._

_The land there was covered with smoke and the people fighting there were too small to see at such great distance._ _He was__ waiting for something to do cause Ichigo didn't prefer when someone helped him in finishing off just some hollows._

_He impatiently looked at Ichigo and called out again_,

_"Ichigo!"_

_Ichigo__ scowled as he finished up with his set of hollows as well. Then he looked at Keigo and said,_

_"Shut up damnit! I had 23 more hollows than you to handle!"_

_Keigo just ignored the comment with an sigh and asked,_

_"Why didn't you tell me to follow Byakuya earlier?"_

_"Well I was in a hurry. Besides I sensed some new groups of hollows heading his way"_

_Keigo right now wished he had Ichigo's sensing abilities but held that thought in his mind before asking,_

_"Does it look like Byakuya needs help?"_

_Ichigo paused to sense Byakuya's spiritual pressure, to see if he is fighting vigorously or just cutting through the groups like butter.__But he found nothing but a small trace, as if he was in-_

_"-stealth mode. Then you would be the best option to go. If he is trying his best to hide, then he is in trouble." Ichigo said._

_Keigo__ pouted almost childishly and said,_

_"I don't know why I joined the stealth force. If I knew you guys would send me on stealth missions all the time then I wouldn't have tried to be so good at it."_

_Ichigo snorted, rolling his eyes and whispering,_

_"Show off"_

_Keigo who was on his way towards Byakuya said,_

_"I heard that!"_

_Ichigo just shook his head with a small smile as Keigo flashstepped away. He stared at the spot where Keigo was once standing_ _intensely._

_If__ 6 years ago someone had told him that Keigo would be a fighter as good as a lieutenant then he would have laughed at their faces._

_He__ suddenly raised his zanpaktō towards his right only to stop short and notice a frantic looking Soi-fon be at that spot, not even fazed by the sword at her neck._

_"Soi-fon wha-" Ichigo started but was cut off as the captain quickly asked,_

_"Where is Keigo?!"_

_Ichigo raised an eyebrow and said,_

_"Calm down Soi-fon, I thought it was something serious. He just went after Byakuya to clear another set of hollows. I thought since Byakuya was in stealth mode he might be in trouble-"_

_Ichigo was cut off once again as Soi-fon said,_

_"No you don't understand baka! Byakuya was in stealth mode because he was on his way to get out of there!"_

_Ichigo, now alarmed asked,_

_"But why? Orihime had told Byakuya that he will handle the hollows of that district today. So why the heck was he trying to get out of there?"_

_Soi-fon took a deep breath in, as if trying to form the correct sentence and then said,_

_"They caught on to the pattern"_

_"What?" Ichigo asked, shocked._

_Soi-fon__ shook her head as if she was still internally denying it and said,_

_"They caught on to the pattern . . . They knew who we were going to send there today because of our freaking repetitive patterns! There was a trap there, that was meant to kill a captain Ichigo! Keigo is only as strong as a lieutenant! He alone can't handle it Ichigo!"_

_Ichigo had no time to think as he sheathed his swords and started flashstepping into that direction, Soi-fon right beside him._

_But__ they only got one flashstep in before there was a resounding boom._

_Then everything went white as they both covered their eyes and tried to stay on the ground as the strong wind and debris almost blew them away. Ichigo had to hold onto Soi-fon's arm to make sure she wasn't flying into the opposite direction._

_Both__ of them dared to open their eyes after a minute only to see the big and bright ash cloud that stretched for 3 kilometres, hanging over the spot that was supposed to be where Keigo was._

_Ichigo__ couldn't say or even think about anything. He only felt._

_Felt__ the hot smoke blow over him. Felt the ringing in his ears still resounding. Felt his hands hang limply on his sides. Felt his clothes get charred by the ash. Felt himself getting sick._

_But__ he also felt Soi-fon fall on the ground beside him, tears pricking in her eyes. He wondered if they were from the ashes or from losing Keigo._

_His__ thoughts were confirmed when he heard her sobs. Her body wreaking sobs as she knelt over the floor, not caring about her hayori being slandered in dirt._

_"No! Not like this! Not after Yourichi sama too! Please! Please! Please . . . " She trailed off, knowing she was helpless._

_He felt like her too but no tears came. They just couldn't at a time like this._

_Keigo__ was his best friend, but he knew losing ones apprentice of 6 years hurt more._ _So__ he decided to help Keigo's sensei get up and hold her on his back to escape._

_He__ tried to sense Byakuya in the vicinity but not finding him here but instead at the base, Ichigo nodded to himself and flashstepped out of the blast range with a sobbing Soi-fon on his back and a dead Keigo in the kilometer wide crater._

_Leaving his dead friend inside Soi-fon's dead apprentice for now._

* * *

His eyes snapped open after the nightmare as a big thud resounded through the room he was in, but the action had taken its course outside. It sounded like someone was thrown somewhere.

So his first thought was that he was under attack.

'Where are Shiro and Zangetsu?' He thought desperately as he tried sensing if his zanpaktō were nearby.

He wanted his zanpaktō in his hands in case of an attack. What if he was ambushed or what if he was being spied on or what if-

His thoughts were stopped short as he finally felt his surroundings. He was covered in soft sheets and was comfortably lying on a bed. His vision was still dark so he tried to feel if had any restraints on, which he didn't. He then sighed in relief.

Not under attack or being captured, good.

He wanted to get up but his body was at the brink of exhaustion. But didn't he just wake up? How in the ever loving hell was he still tired? This was never a good sign.

Shaking his head he decided think if he was in the Shiba compound or the captains had tricked him. He would really appreciate the former.

Now that he felt his vision was clear, he realised that light in the room was off so that's why he couldn't make out where he was.

Now for the question if he was in the Shiba compound or-

"What the fuck did they think they were fucking doing?!" A female voice yelled at someone.

Yup, definitely the Shiba compound.

"L-Lady, I didn't know that t-they were going to a-apply such a strong se-seal on him . . . " The poor man trailed off.

Probably the guy who bought him here.

Now he knew that the conversation was most probably about him. But why was there a Shiba that was getting so worked up about a Shiba she didn't know? They should probably suspect him for spying or something.

"But to a civilian kid?!"

Oh so that's why.

"On the top of that the kid must be traumatized by the experimentation on him! Taking away his zanpaktō I understand but sealing away 95% of his spiritual pressure?! That's just fucking bullshit! How much can a fucking civilian have in a teeny tiny body?!" The Shiba woman said and then there were sounds of walking, she didn't want to talk to that guy anymore.

Ichigo worked his best to get into a sitting position but he couldn't cause he couldn't find himself concentrating on that task. Heck he couldn't even hear what was going on around him.

He knew he should try to get his senses back in check but his mind was buzzing the same phrase over and over again.

'95% of spiritual pressure gone'

On the top of that, the 95% is taken from his already remaining 20% because of his Gentei reiin.

Oh how fucked he was.

He let out a small yelp as a hand covered his back while the woman's another hand held his right arm. He had not even heard the door open and to add the fact the door was just a few meters from his right.

He felt his reflexes move but abruptly stopped himself as the woman softly said,

"Don't worry, I won't harm you"

He wearily nodded and let the woman help him. He wanted to see her but the damn compound didn't have a light switch. Plus it was midnight. If he wanted light then he would have to ask for a candle and that would take some more time and until then the woman will be gone.

He had no time to waste.

Damn he was thinking like Yuzu, getting worked up over a schedule. But the thought of it left him with a bitter aftertaste.

What could he even do? So he decided to have a candle. He could see who was the one who helped him later anyways.

"C-Can you bring some light into the room please?"

The woman had an aura of confusion for a second. Probably wondering why he was talking to her with ease when he should be almost scared of everyone and trust no one.

But he couldn't help it. He knew a person he could trust when he saw one. He wasn't fooled by facades and illusions anymore. At least to his knowledge.

"What do you mean?" She still asked.

"It's dark here so a candle would be nice. I have to see who is helping me anyways." Ichigo added the last sentence with small smile, although not finding the gesture to quite fit on his face.

He knew that most of the Shiba had gotten scattered throughout Rukongai so he will have never known this woman in his timeline too. So seeing someone new sounded like a good idea to him.

The woman first continued being confused and then . . . angry? Very angry. She was furious about something and Ichigo didn't want to be at the recieving end of it. Especially when he was almost drained of reiatsu and didn't have a single weapon on him.

Adding to the box that he was a 10 year old kid who was supposed to be a civilian.

But then the woman got up and clenched her fists by the sounds of it. Well she was angry but the fact why she didn't attack him right away was also a mystery.

And that's when Ichigo felt confused too. Did he say something wrong? Did he offend the Shiba in any way? He would know if he did cause he was a Shiba too. Did he offend the woman in any way? Was she confused because he trusted her too quickly?

There was silence for a minute as the woman considered what she should say in a situation like this. But then she sighed, knowing it was best to talk about it right now anyways.

"K-Kid . . . I don't know how to say this but . . . the room is full of light and it's day outside. The window is open and the garden is letting in alot of light"

What?

"_What?_ "

The woman grit her teeth and with hidden anger, not directed towards him but at someone else and said,

"I wasn't able to know this at first cause you were asleep but . . . now I know that you are . . . blind"

Before Ichigo could ask anything else she stormed out of the room but not without sliding the door behind her shut with a loud slam.

* * *

She was going to kill them. She was sure she was going to kill them.

'Those Gotei 13 bastards are going to have a piece of my mind!' She thought as her long black hair flew around the room as she ran, her side bangs flowing out of her face without her caring about it a bit.

That was enough of a warning for everyone about her anger.

The Shiba household workers paused in their daily tasks to glance at the furious woman stomping down the wooden floored halls, towards the clan head's room.

One of them, the woman's personal caretaker, a short woman with short brown hair and a loose red yukata, was confident enough to approach the woman.

"Ikumi sama, It isn't healthy for you to run around in that condition!" The servant firmly reminded and glared at her master with her dark brown eyes.

She stood in front of her master, arms crossed. As if daring her to make a move beyond this point. It was a well known fact that there were only a few people Ikumi listened to and one of them was Fuku.

Or else everyone around them would have ran to be anywhere but here, knowing how bad it got when two Shibas fought. Even if it was just for fun and games.

The said woman, Ikumi looked at her caretaker and said,

"Fuku, do you know what those bastards have done to that kid?!"

Fuku shook her head calmly and said,

"No, I don't. By your reaction I am sure it was something awful but I am also sure it isn't something that is worthy of risking your unborn son."

With those words Fuku saw Ikumi calm down, the woman's hands unconsciously rubbing her not yet swollen stomach. It had been just two weeks since everyone had known. All the Shibas secretly watched out for Ikumi. The woman was a goof of course, she needed watching.

Fuku smiled at her master's antics before she walked up to her and straightened Ikumi's hayori and asked,

"Lime Green kimono and red hayori? Ikumi sama your dressing sense is getting worse day by day. What would little Ikumi think about his mother when he is born and you are wearing ridiculous colours like these?"

Ikumi laughed fondly as Fuku continued to fix her master's jacket/hayori while the servants around the duo sighed in relief at the change of atmosphere before silently shifting back to their work.

Then Ikumi sighed as she remembered again how bad the situation actually is and said,

"I will be fine Fuku. Just promise me you will hold me back when I have a _chat _with Bunzō"

**(Till now there are only three OC:**

**Bunzō Shiba: Current head of the Shiba clan.**

**Ikumi Shiba****: Sister of the current head of the Shiba clan / Bunzō's sister.**

**Fuku Shiba****: A ranking servant. )**

Fuku nodded with a small smile as she and Ikumi slowly started walking towards the clan head's room. Fuku held onto Ikumi's arm so that the woman doesn't fall over if there was a chance. Also she did that to make sure Ikumi doesn't run off in anger again.

"Will you at least tell me what's wrong with the kid?" Fuku asked carefully, not wanting to rile up the already angry woman.

Ikumi grit her teeth and said,

"Those bastards put a seal on him. That was okay and all but the seal they put on him goddamit! Fuku, you won't believe what it did! It was so strong that it blocked 95% of the boy's spiritual pressure!"

Fuku also seemed to scowl a bit at that, her short brown hair covering her face so that her master can't see her distress. Even she seemed to understand why her master was so riled up. Nobody did that kind of a torture to a Shiba and got away with it.

"But his body will adapt to it won't it?" Fuku asked, hoping there must have been something good in the whole situation.

But her mood got worse when Ikumi said,

"His body will adapt but there was a side effect Fuku . . . the kid has gone blind . . . "

Fuku's eyes widened as she realised the dire situation. She was sure she didn't like it a bit. Now Gotei 13 was treating kids as criminals? That was just too much.

"I don't know which one of us will need to be held back when we talk to the clan head. I mean, why did the clan head even allow that?!" Fuku said, catching Ikumi off guard.

It wasn't often that Ikumi saw the small and timid Fuku get angry. In fact, Fuku only raised her voice if something was harming either Ikumi or Ikumi's unborn baby or when someone dishonours the Shiba clan.

"Why are you so riled up about this kid?" Ikumi asked bluntly.

Fuku sighed as if she had been caught and said,

"I was the kid's caretaker for the last few days. I am sorry for informing you of his presence just today"

Ikumi raised an eyebrow, not really minding the whole keeping the kid secret business and asked,

"So the kid has been here for how long now? And that still doesn't explain why you are angry ya know?"

"He has been here, unconscious, for a week. We were told to not inform you for a week because you might react to it similar to how you did today. I had been with him since the last week. That is also why you had a different servant for the whole past week."

Ikumi nodded but Fuku's hesitance didn't go unnoticed by her.

"There is something else isn't it?"

Fuku bit her lip as they paused in front of the clan head's sliding door. Ikumi patiently waiting before Fuku replied.

"The kid suffers from nightmares every single night Ikumi sama . . . he doesn't trash around in his nightmares like most do but his expressions are a dead give away. If it wasn't for his expressions then I wouldn't have known. There hasn't been a single day where he hasn't suffered from a nightmare. But I wasn't even able to wake the kid up."

Ikumi now instead of getting angry felt worry well up inside of her. The kid was just a civilian in aspect but was a survivor of experimentation. She knew the kid's condition was bad but this was just insane.

Plus she hadn't even asked the kid how he felt about being blind before storming out of the room in anger. Heck she didn't even leave someone behind to ask him if he needs water or something.

Making up her mind Ikumi said,

"Fuku, go back to the boy's room. I left him alone there. He is blind and doesn't know where he is. Help him if he needs something."

Fuku was going to argue but Ikumi cut her off and said,

"Don't worry, I won't kill my brother Fuku. That bastard has a lot of work to do before dying! I will just talk to him. I want to know if this can be undone."

Fuku was still hesitant but nodded as she ran off to the direction where they had come from.

Ikumi watched the woman go before she straightened her red hayori again and slid the clan head's door open with a large thud, her eyes glaring at her brother who was just at his last set of paperwork.

Bunzō looked up at the sudden noise and ran a hand over his face before he set his pen down and said,

"I have been waiting Ikumi"

**(PLEASE READ:**

**I was reviewing the chapter and noticed that I never explained how Bunzō looked like at all and yes, he does appear again. So let me just do that in this note:**

**Bunzō looks like he is in his mid 30's and is only a bit taller than her sister who is 5'7. He also has black hair like her sister and he wears it in a small low ponytail that reaches just a few inches below his neck. He is fair skinned but a bit tanned too. Ikumi is fair skinned like Kukaku btw. He wears a red Yukata with a golden hayori/jacket. He has a zanpaktō with yellow scabbard and dark blue hilt on his back.)**

* * *

Fuku silently slid open door so as to not startle the kid if he was sleeping. But she entered casually as she noticed he was awake and sitting up.

"Who's there?" The kid asked sharply.

She flinched at the uncertainty in his voice but calmly replied,

"I am Fuku Shiba, I am here to take care of you"

The young boy seemed to relax a bit before he asked,

"You don't sound like the woman before. Who was she? And was she mad at me? I don't think I have done something wrong . . . yet"

Chuckling at the childish curiosity she said,

"She was Ikumi Shiba. She was the sister of the Shiba clan head-"

'Kukaku san had a sister?' Ichigo thought.

Fuku continued despite noticing the look of confusion pass over the kid's face,

"-the clan head's name is Banzō Shiba, he is the 31st head of the Shiba clan."

'Then when did Kukaku san become the clan head? She was the 32nd head of the clan.'

When Ichigo was busy in his own line of thinking, Fuku took in the boy's appearance. The 10 year old was taking the news of being blind suprisingly well. She would assume a normal 10 year old to cry and whine and be scared of the long lasting darkness.

But this kid looked like he was almost habitual to this.

"How do you feel?" Fuku asked, making the boy get out of his own musings.

The boy rubbed the back of his neck with one hand as he said,

"I am just tired I guess. Very tired. Plus being blind now is taking a toll as well."

Fuku raised an eyebrow as if asking,

'That's it?'

Then she realised he cannot see her expressions so she asked,

"Are you worried about your . . . blindness?"

The boy seemed to think for a second before saying,

"I would be lying if I said I wasn't. But I am alive so that's a plus too. And after a while I will become habitual to it I guess?"

She wanted to point out how furious he should be in this situation but decided to ask something else entirely.

"You seem mature for a 10 year old" Fuku noted, her tone hanging in the air.

Ichigo just shrugged, knowing that she was trying to interrogate him. The Shiba even though were brash, were smart as hell for sure.

They also didn't appreciate a spy in their clan.

But he wasn't a Shiba for nothing.

"Do you need something?" Fuku asked as she got up, knowing that she won't be able to ask him anymore questions other than the basics.

Ichigo knew he was forgetting something. Something important. He was sure it belonged to this timeline. It was-

"-Nozomi! Where is she?!" Ichigo asked frantically.

Fuku startled by the sudden outburst asked anyways,

"Who is Nozomi?"

"She was a fox. She was with me all this time, she was this small, had brown and red fur an-"

"She's okay! Jeez, she is just in our animal shelter. I can bring her if you want." Fuku said calmly, understanding that the animal was important to the boy.

Ichigo nodded and Fuku asked,

"Anything else?"

Ichigo noticed his dry throat after all and sheepishly asked,

"Some water would be nice?"

Fuku rolled her eyes as she walked out. That hollowified fox must have been damn important to the boy if he didn't even notice his horse voice until now.

* * *

On her way back with the animal in her hand Fuku saw Ikumi coming out of her brother / clan head's room with frown on her face.

"Ikumi sama?"

Ikumi looked at her right to see Fuku walking around with a dog in her hand.

"How did the meeting go Ikumi sama?" Fuku asked again.

Ikumi ignoring the dog for the moment said,

"He said that he didn't have a say in the matter of application of the seal."

"Huh? Why is that?"

"Because the seal was applied for the safety of soul society. However strong the clans might be, the safety of soul society still falls under the jurisdiction of the Gotei 13."

"And even though the boy has no fighting abilities or any kind of intellectual knowledge besides of a 10 year old, they still took his swords away. Saying something like, 'He is an experiment. He might have very fast learning abilities'. Meaning that he might learn how to use his zanpaktō if left with him." Ikumi continued.

Seeing Fuku deep in thought, Ikumi decided to change the topic and asked,

"What's with the dog? Did the brat ask for a pet the second he entered the compound? We might be a clan but we don't handle good for nothing kids who are just rich snobs."

Fuku laughed a bit as she said,

"It isn't a dog, it's a fox Ikumi sama. And no, the kid is actually very polite. Very quite for a Shiba but quite a thinker for his age. But kinda dense, in a good way. Hell he even forgot to ask for water in the first place after waking up after so long because he was worried about a pet."

Ikumi smiled sheepishly before asking,

"Then what's with the fox?"

"It's his pet, Nozomi."

"So the brat really did ask for a pet-"

"-No he didn't. It's actually _his _pet. He had it before he came here. I asked the Shiba who had brought him here and he said that the kid actually argued with the head captain for keeping her."

Ikumi whistled in admiration and said,

"Must have guts to go against the head captain in front of the other captains. But why was the old man so reluctant anyways? It's just a baby fox for kami's sake!"

Fuku rolled her eyes as she removed her arm that was resting on top of the fox, using the other to not wake up the sleeping animal.

Ikumi eyes widened as she took notice of the small patch of white mask around the fox's right ear.

"It's a hollow?!" Ikumi yelled.

Fuku hit her master lightly on her elbows and whispered,

"Be quite Ikumi sama! Yes it's a hollow but apparently it's harmless. Don't yell things like that or the Shiba soldiers will think you were talking about another real hollow and show up here. They will come running when they realise it's you that's yelling."

"Why the special treatment for me?" Ikumi asked innocently, pointing at herself.

Fuku internally rolled her eyes at her master's denseness. She and the boy would make good acquaintances. Her master hadn't even realised that almost each and every person in the Shiba clan was on a lookout for her since she was declared pregnant.

And to know this woman was a trained fighter? Fuku barely controlled a sigh that escaped her.

"Talking about another hollow? You mean, everyone knows about this one living in the Shiba shelters?" Ikumi asked, knowing Fuku wasn't in the mood to reply to her earlier question.

"Yes, everyone does. Now let's go and meet the kid, I didn't even ask his name. I just told someone to give him water before going into the animal shelter to pick the fox up."

With that Ikumi and Fuku walked towards the child's room while on the way Fuku explained her what she observed about him.

* * *

Ichigo patiently waited in his room. Someone had come in to give him water and they had approached carefully. Even looking back at him to check if something was wrong before leaving. So with that he could probably deduce that everyone knew he was blind.

And they weren't so happy about it.

He didn't know what was up with Shibas and treating each member as their own but he liked it. If he was being honest with himself, he would treath another Shiba the same way they are doing to him.

Guess it was just in their blood to treat everyone the same especially Shibas. No wonder his dad opened a pharmacy to help people.

His eyes lit up a bit on his emotionless face as he realised that he actually had a place he could call home, not right away but he could after a while. He liked the idea of having a home knowing that his real one didn't even know he existed.

He ran a hand over the futon, feeling the soft fabric until it abruptly ended and then started a rough but smooth surface. The floor is carpeted he guessed.

He removed his bed sheet and flexed his fingers and toes, finding them movable he decided to get up.

Not a good decision at first.

He fell down to his knees as quickly as he had gotten up, his legs still tingling at the loss of movement for so long. He scowled at his weak muscles but he knew it was only natural for this to happen after doing nothing for one whole week. He tried getting up again, his legs shaking but he soon he found his way up, slowly.

Then when he was standing completely straight he tried it. The method he had used to see when Ginjo had turned him blind.

It didn't involve much of thinking or wasn't complicated in anyway. It just required a lot of control on your reiatsu or you will have to be put in a situation where you do it without thinking.

And he didn't want his eyes to be slashed in the middle of a fight again thank you.

And he had good control on his reiatsu, taught by the best. Head Captain sure teaches well for his old age.

Plus he had the advantage of having almost no reiatsu at all. Only a little more than what is required for the body to function. So he was going to make great use of that little more.

Standing there in the middle of the room he used his part of reiatsu that wasn't being used and directed it to flow towards his face first. He felt the sensation that almost felt like cold water over his face and he knew he was successful in the first step. Then he slowly began to centre the reiatsu towards his eyes which he still kept close.

After half a minute the process was done. Once he had found the pathway it was easy to lead drops of spiritual pressure towards his eyes constantly without stopping. It was as if he had constructed a small pipe and the pipe constantly provided water to the plant, like drip irrigation.

Then he opened his eyes and sighed in relief. Because mostly everything in soul society was made of reishi of different composition, he was seeing everything in different shades of blue except the sky that was for some reason black. He guessed that around him reishi might be present but at great heights reishi decreases, just like oxygen.

He saw the opened sliding door, that led to the garden. The garden looked like a mush of different shades of blue while the wooden part of the door looked a bit darker than its paper sections. Then he raised his arms and saw that they were the brightest amongst everything in the room.

And to say he was almost completely derived of spiritual pressure, he wouldn't even want to know how the other Shibas looked like. With their exceptionally high spiritual pressure than other clans or even some shinigami, they probably will look like bright blue bulbs almost touching his eyeballs. He still won't be able to see their faces though. Just bright blue silhouettes.

Well something was better than nothing.

He walked towards the garden but didn't go beyond the door. He didn't want people to think he was running away from the Shiba compound just for doing something completely irrelevant, the Shiba guards would catch him anyways cause he is in no position to run or even go stealth mode.

Those Shiba guards who were hiding in the shadows were painfully visible in his spiritual range. If you ask him, they weren't doing a poor job, it was a just easy job for a highly trained sensor to find them. If they tried hiding from him, it would be like hiding from Yamamoto.

But the two of them had left to inform someone that he had tried standing up and was successful too. You wouldn't want the blind kid to run around would you? Plus he was glad they weren't in the room when he had started using the technique. They came back later.

They will not try to do anything funny unless he is not doing anything either. At least not now.

He crossed his arms over his chest and sighed before calling his zanpaktō with the mind link,

'Shiro? Old man?'

But no response came.

Just like he had expected, his spiritual block caused his mental connection to waver. It was overall bad, not having enough to have a talk with his zanpaktō or even having enough to use instant regeneration on his eyes. He knew the second these seals were removed, he was having his eyesight back. But what worried him was how long it would be until he could remove these.

But when his thoughts swung back to his zanpaktō, he frowned.

The only two people he knew and could talk to were gone as well.

* * *

Ikumi stood at the sliding door which somebody had kept open. Fuku by her side was silent as well as they observed the boy. He was staring at the garden in disdain, as if the garden was responsible for turning him blind.

There was a grim atmosphere around the room. In the Shiba compound that kind of thing only happenes when someone dies. Usually all the Shibas were nothing but smart, loud and happy people.

But the kid kept staring. Did the kid even know what he was staring at? Was he just simply standing there?

Yet such a somber expression on a child's face? This wasn't even a normal soul society kid who is 100 years old, no. This is literally a 10 year old kid who is looking like he has no purpose in life.

Ikumi saw Fuku glance at her worriedly. On their way here they had talked about how Ichigo had been rather unresponsive on his discovered blindness. Guess the kid knew how to mask his expressions.

Nozomi stirred in Fuku's arms and after a few seconds completely woke up. But Fuku held back the fox, worried that the fox might make his situation worse. Which she herself realised was weird considering the fox was the boy's pet. The kid hasn't even done anything to make them feel so anxious around him.

The slight ruffling of Nozomi's fur against Fuku's yukata was surprisingly heard by the boy.

He sharply looked towards their direction and his amber eyes stared into . . . their eyes as well?

Wasn't the kid blind?

"Who's there?"

The boy's tone held no end of denying an answer. It was as if . . . he was threating them to answer and if they didn't then . . .

What could this little guy even do?

But they somehow felt compelled to give an answer even if they wanted to deny it. His tone was of a . . . high ranking officer.

'Weird for a kid to sound like that' Ikumi thought.

When Ichigo narrowed his eyes Ikumi remembered that they still hadn't given him an answer.

"I am Ikumi Shiba, sister of the head of the Shiba clan. Beside me, the shorter one, is Fuku Shiba, my caretaker."

Ichigo's face showed recognition as he realised that they were the same woman who had helped him before. So he relaxed his tense body and decided a normal approach.

At least an approach, he thought would make him seem a bit normal. But he had not been expecting a unexpected answer.

"Why do you need a caretaker? You don't sound like a kid, I would say you sound like someone in their mid 20's"

Ichigo's blunt reply, which was very similar to how a Shiba would talk made Ikumi laugh out loud as Fuku chuckled as well as they slowly but with loud footsteps entered the room. They didn't want the boy to think they were trying to sneak up on him.

"I need a caretaker because I have something inside of me and I don't want to be reckless with it ya know?!" Ikumi exclaimed in excitement.

And for a good second Ichigo thought she was talking about a inner hollow and that she was somehow a Vizard. But then he felt something, a different presence.

It was small, very small but it had a completely different reiatsu signature than Ikumi or Fuku or anyone in the Shiba clan vicinity, like a different person and it . . . was coming from Ikumi's belly.

Ichigo's eyes widened as he realised and Ikumi laughed and said,

"I see that you realise what I was talking about."

It didn't go unnoticed by Ikumi that the boy had used a sensing method to sense her baby boy. It wasn't an uncommon skill in case of civilians though. It just meant that the civilian had a potential of becoming a shinigami.

Ichigo knew it hadn't been wrong to ask that question but the question felt wrong when he had gotten the answer so he decided to apologize.

Ichigo nodded to himself before inclining his head a bit forward and saying,

"I-I am sorry for asking"

He heard Ikumi gasp in utter shock and Ichigo could imagine her face was of someone mocking shock.

"Fuku! Why didn't you tell me that a Shiba, was so shy and polite?! We will need to make you break more rules young man! This is against the Shiba culture!"

And for the first time since he was back, Ichigo felt a smile creep up into his face.

Although very small, at least it was a real one.

Fuku and Ikumi brightened up at that smallest possibility of change and quickly Ikumi reached out and pulled the boy's arm to take him away from the room.

"I have some more work with the clan head but after that we are going to feed the boy up Fuku! Then we will help him get acquainted to his loss!" Ikumi said with determination and the room was then left only with Fuku and Nozomi.

Fuku just sighed and looked down at the fox in her hands.

"They forgot to take you Nozomi chan"

* * *

**-1 week earlier-**

Everyone saw Komomura pick the kid and the fox up gently and walk out of the meeting room. The Shiba clan member will take both of them back.

After a long pause Yamamoto said,

"This meeting is dismissed."

Everybody started walking out the room when Ukitake turned around and saw Shunsui still waiting at his position.

"Shunsui, you aren't coming?"

Shunsui looked at his friend and smiled as he said,

"I have something more to discuss with the old man. I will meet you at your barracks, go now."

Ukitake glanced back Yamamoto who gave a small nod before Ukitake walked out as well, leaving the hallway almost empty.

And it was Yamamoto that had started the conversation,

"Tell me why Shunsui, when you three came back you decided to run ahead of them and asked me to have talk a about Las Noches? Cause even though old, my brain still remembers perfectly and my brain is telling me that Las Noches is a run down place with nothing of our importance."

Shunsui's expression changed from that of a smile to a completely serious demeanor as he said,

"And that is why I wanted to ask you if there has been a mention of anything related to castles in our recent reports of Hueco Mundo."

* * *

Ichigo silently waited outside the clan head's room with Nozomi in arms. Fuku and Ikumi were inside.

The two woman had told him he could walk around if he wanted to but he knew this was just a trick to make sure if he was blind or not. Plus the two guards that were currently hiding above him, in the roof, were observing him too. And if he wasn't mistaken then a distance of 5 meters away from him, the roof was filled with more guards, probably the ones on daily duty there.

He had just found out 5 minutes earlier that his supply of reiatsu was almost undetectable so he could activate and deactivate it whenever he wanted to and nobody would sense it.

He did that in front of Ikumi cause she was the trained one from the pair (it was obvious) and noticed that the woman didn't observe this skill of his, at least when he used it on his own eyes.

Both women were currently busy talking to the clan head about his further processes of settling down in the clan.

At least that's what the two women had told him.

He wasn't an idiot and he knew that his behaviour and given reactions were different for a 10 year old who had just lost his sight. But he couldn't act shocked if the situation wasn't too shocking or if he wasn't in any danger. Yes, his acting skills were great (this is a self compliment) but there had to be _some _kind of danger.

He just felt too safe in the Shiba compound.

And also, it just felt ridiculous to try and feel fear.

So he did what he thought was best to do in a situation like this. He had planned to be in the safe zone for this time.

Meaning, that he won't act like a completely clueless kid and actually act a little like himself. They won't even question it because he is an experiment. He just had an overly developed brain for all they could care.

And the plan was working till now.

He wanted to hear what was going on inside but couldn't hear a thing. They probably set up a sound proof room for the clan head.

But if anyone asked him, doing that was just a reckless decision. What if the clan head was attacked at night and no one even knew? He wouldn't even need to ask if they have the same types of room for Ikumi and other royal blood, it was obvious they did.

He will have to fix some things in the Shiba clan as well.

He sighed as he glanced down at Nozomi. He couldn't see her red colour anymore, all he saw was blue. He had liked her fur. Sure it wasn't brown like Masa's but he liked her fur better.

He squeezed his eyes shut with a grimace as he closed off his reiatsu supply to them. It actually physically hurt to use the technique for so long.

But that hadn't happened earlier. He could remember using it for days continuously.

'I didn't think it would have drawbacks. I can still use it but the blue shade of everything is like watching a bright phone screen and trying to focus on the small letters . . . '

He will have to practice using this for long durations or it would be a problem for him.

He shook his head swiftly to get rid of the remaining dizziness and tried using the technique again only to flinch at the sudden pang of pain.

Only this time it was much much worse.

His hands reached out towards his eyes as Nozomi got down to the floor without another word. But he froze when he touched his face.

Wet.

He felt something _wet_ coming from his eyes.

And he was pretty sure he wasn't crying.

Ikumi and Fuku found that time the best to come out the door. They saw Ichigo facing the courtyard with his back towards them.

"Is the courtyard so bad that you can't even look at it?" Ikumi joked as she noticed how Ichigo was covering his whole face.

Fuku was having the same thought until she glanced down and saw Nozomi looking at Ichigo with droopy ears that signified her worry.

That is also when she noticed the drops of blood.

Fuku's eyes widened as she stepped towards the boy fast and with a tight grip on his shoulder turned him around so he was facing them.

She gasped at the sight and Ikumi took a step back at the horrible scene.

Ichigo lowered his bloodied hands a bit and opened his aching eyes enough to see the reaction of the people in front of him.

Of course all he saw was small blurs of blue and black and nothing else.

"I-" Ikumi started but was interrupted by her brother who had also till now noticed the bloodied brown eyes.

'When did Bunzō come out of his room? I didn't even hear him . . . ' Ikumi thought.

"Ikumi, the request I denied you has been lifted. Now you have been granted permission to take the boy to Unohana Retsu of 4th division." Bunzō declared firmly but the concern in his voice wasn't ignored.

"4 guards!" Bunzō said and soon 4 guards, two male and two female, clad in loose black yukata appeared with their own personal weapons covered in red tape and scabbard strapped to them.

"Escort Ikumi and Kurosaki san to 4th squad of seireitei!"

Before any of them could complain two of the guards rested their hands on Ichigo's and Ikumi's shoulders to take them away in their flashstep while the other two simply followed.

Fuku looked at the now empty hallway before looking at Bunzō and asking,

"I should have gone too, don't you think?"

She sounded disappointed, very much disappointed, Bunzō noted.

"I have another work for you. 2 guards!"

2 similar male Shiba guards appeared and Bunzō said,

"I want you to escort Fuku san to the 8th squad!"

Fuku merily raised an eyebrow at that and some could even sense the Shiba fighters get confused too as they were hiding in the shadows and listening to the conversation from the start.

"I want you to impart a personally written message to Kyoraku Shunsui. I want him to know what has happened to the boy because of a mistake of someone from his squad. I want to ask him to inform me when he finds the culprit who is still roaming in his squad." Bunzō said silently and then turned around as he left Fuku stunned at his anger.

But before he went in to write the note he slightly glanced back at the three people still standing in the hallway and flashed the widest grin possible as he ended his conversation with,

"I also want the culprit to know what happens when you mess with a Shiba like that . . . "

Yes, the Shiba clan _indeed_ treated each and every clan member as their own.

**(Note: The 'indeed' wasn't sarcasm. Just needed to make sure.)**

* * *

**flevantein: Yes kinda but isn't as strong as Aizen's. It actually allows passage of spirit energy but reduced to a painfully small amount and yes, in this Komomura will have the key. And I know how Ichigo just shoots his way through everything but he has a few tricks up his sleeve cause someone doesn't come out of war without anything haha! X**

**D****arakater: first of all, dude you aren't being rude at all! There are people who comment in a much much less civilized way, tbh you did make your point cross in the best way.**

**Don't worry about the pacing, there will be a timeskip soon enough : )**

**And yes, I haven't decided for an pairing but if it is Ichihime then I will give some content for the pairing to actually start, unlike the manga where everything related to Ichihime is set in the novel : (** **And I am not sure about Ichihime as well so you will have to wait until I reach that point :-\**

**Taboada666: Okayyyy???**

**Gerhman Remington: Okayyyy anddd???**

**hadatko28: Thank you so much!! And for the zanpaktō thing, I am just evil like that haha lol XD**

**Leafy-tan: Thank you so much!!**

**Bellator Kurosaki: ****Haha I do understand you : ) And that eye thing, at one point I had considered using that but it just looked too flashy and too soon so I didn't lmao ; )**


	13. Chapter 13

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**Two rants at the end: 1) Pairing 2) Story**

**Plus replies at the very last~**

**This chapter will be very short but new one will be available in a few days only! Bear with me : (**

**Btw** **there**** are some Easter eggs in the earlier chapters that will help you crack the story further by a bit. But you need to read it carefully to find them.**

**[HINT: Till now ( if I can count properly ) there are 4 Easter eggs!]**

* * *

Unohana heard her office door slide open loudly. But being the quite and calm lady she was, she didn't find it necessary to point out the person's rudeness like the other captains might have.

She set down her pen, not being in the mood to do paperwork in noon anyways, as she looked up and smiled when she saw her frequent patient. Considering the patient was a Shiba she didn't mind the door thing at all now.

Shibas were meant to be loud and especially proud of this attitude of theirs. Completely opposite of the Kuchikis.

But she frowned when she noticed how the woman was scowling and 4 guards were surrounding her.

"Is something wrong Ikumi san? Is it the baby? Do you feel unwell?" Unohana asked as she stood up, now worried about the woman's health.

Ikumi shook her head as a worrisome expression took over her features and she looked behind her. Unohana followed Ikumi's eyes and saw someone standing behind Ikumi, holding onto her lime green hayori/jacket.

"C'mon kid, we are here" Ikumi said as she reached out and lightly pushed Ichigo in front of her.

Unohana gasped as she saw the white bandages wrapped around the child's head, covering his eyes. She wouldn't have recognized the kid if it wasn't for his orange hair and the fox small baby fox sitting on his shoulder.

"Ichigo? What happened?!" She whispered as she walked over to the boy and started untying the wrappings around his eyes.

'So the kid's name is Ichigo? Damn didn't Bunzō even think of telling me his name?' Ikumi thought as she saw Unohana guide Ichigo towards the chair that was in front of her desk for patients.

The inside of the bandages were now covered in dried blood and some of it was also around Ichigo's eyes.

"How did this happen?" Unohana asked Ikumi this time as she cleaned the blood on his face with a washcloth that a squad member had quickly supplied on her order.

"He . . . woke up blind." Ikumi stated firmly.

Ichigo realised that Unohana had now paused in her cleaning and waves of regret were flowing off her. That's when he felt guilt well up in his own stomach. He didn't want the Gotei 13 to think it was their fault. It kinda was, but he didn't want them to think that.

Ichigo heard the woman sigh and say,

"So our suppression seal did that?"

"Yes" Ikumi said bitterly.

Unohana bit her lip but then looked at Ikumi who was still glaring and then back at Ichigo who seemed blank. Too blank for someone who had lost their sight.

"I . . . will see what I can do but by the looks of it he will stay blind. Most chances of him recovering his eyesight will be through the removal of the seal. Which, isn't in my hands." Unohana declared softly as she started provide a green glow to his eyes with her hands.

"It's okay captain Unohana" Ichigo muttered with what looked like a forced small smile.

Unohana smiled at him but her expression still held guilt as she said,

"You might not have life lessons taught to you but you can eventually learn. So remember this first lesson: You deserve to be angry at people who cause you harm or use you Ichigo. Who is bad or good can be determined by your reaction to the situation."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow at her as he had never thought Unohana would trust him so quickly and that too so much belief will be put into him that she would start advising him with life lessons.

But he realised that she was the one who took care of him for a whole month when he had first fainted in the captains meeting room. She must have gotten attached in some sort of way.

Unohana chuckled at his puzzled look before saying,

"We may have sealed you but you are still a child who fell into the hands of a mad man. In a way, it might be out fault that this happened."

Ichigo just dumbly nodded as Unohana started wrapping a new set of bandages around his eyes then helped him get up and walk towards Ikumi and the guards who were still grudgingly standing at the open door.

"Don't let him keep his eyes open for longer than 10 minutes. For someone who wasn't blind since birth, they have a habit of trying to use their optic nerves even though they can't. This sometimes can cause bleeding. However he bled a bit too much, I don't know how though." Unohana said and Ichigo felt a few gazes in his head but tried his best to ignore them.

"So he will constantly have bandages around his eyes?" Ikumi asked, still bitter over the whole situation.

"Yes, I am sorry to say but he has to. Don't keep his eyes open for more than 10 minutes as I said. Change those every 3 days for now and after a month you can keep each the bandage for a week before changing again." Unohana said.

Ikumi glanced as Ichigo who was currently looking nowhere. He was looking at the wall but obviously he didn't know that. Then she sighed at the whole damn mess they had gotten into.

She wanted to be mad to the Gotei but Unohana was just a normal and sweet lady that it was almost impossible to get mad at her. Plus Unohana had helped her every way possible whenever she had felt sick.

It felt rude to be petty even though she had every right to be and now Ikumi understood why Ichigo didn't want to get angry at the Gotei for turning him blind.

As crazy as it sounded, she agreed with the boy.

"Okay then, we will leave no-", Ikumi was cut off as the 5 presences flashstepped inside the room and everyone was on guard.

But Ikumi sighed when she noticed it was Fuku and her 2 Shiba guards.

Along with squad 8's captain and lieutenant?

"Captain Kyoraku and lieutenant Ise? What are you doing here?" Unohana asked.

But Shunsui paid no attention to her as his eyes scanned the room only to stop on the youngest member.

"Ichigo . . . " Shunsui started but couldn't find words to back up his conversation.

Nanao wasn't fairing that well either. Both of them looked to be drowning in guilt. Beside them Fuku had the same bitter expression Ikumi held but hers was softened by sympathy for them.

"Kyoraku san?" Ichigo asked, looking at the direction he thought he had heard the voice from.

He wasn't foolish enough to use his technique in front of two captains and a lieutenant who were clearly better sensors than the entirety of the Shiba clan.

"How did this happen?" Nanao finally decided to ask as she took slow steps towards him and crouched right in front of him.

"Probably because of the seal, even captain Unohana said that was the reason. I woke up like this and first thought they didn't have any lights and that it was midnight but then Shiba san here told me that it was midday." Ichigo gave a small sheepish smile at his reasoning.

Nanao's eyes widened as she noticed how carefree the boy was about this topic. One glance at everyone in the room and she knew she wasn't the only one thinking that.

"It's Ikumi to you brat. How many times do I have to tell you? We don't do manners in Shiba clan!" Ikumi said proudly and Ichigo would have rolled his eyes if the bandages were around them.

"By the way Fuku, what are you doing here?" Ikumi asked.

Fuku was brought out of her musings by the question and she said,

"I was ordered to inform captain Kyoraku of Ichigo's condition and tell him to inform Bunzō sama when the culprit for the experimentation is found."

"I see. So I guess our work here is done?" Ikumi asked out loud and Fuku nodded as she walked towards Ichigo.

"Well then we will be going. Thanks for the treatment Unohana!" Ikumi said as she stepped out the door and was followed by Ichigo and Fuku slowly and around them the guards also flanked protectively.

As soon as the door closed Shunsui asked,

"Is it permeant?"

Unohana shrugged as if saying she wasn't sure and that worried the duo even more.

"I know for sure it was because of the seal. And there is a 90% chance that his vision will return when the seal is removed. But till then, he will stay like this." Unohana said.

Nanao looked at Shunsui, hope in her eyes and asked,

"The seal will be lifted soon, right?"

Shunsui just pulled down his hat as he walked towards the door as well, fully intending to walk out.

That did nothing but make the lieutenant more nervous.

* * *

Yamamoto sat on his desk, Shunsui standing beside him as they ran through the paperwork supplied by squad 9 under a wooden torch, crinkling every second reminding them of time. Currently they were gazing at a particular paperwork, the latest one supplied to squad 9 by squad 5.

"So . . . Aizen indeed _had _mentioned a castle in his latest reports of Hueco Mundo." Shunsui declared as he straitened up and looked at the paperwork with disappointment.

Yamamoto just chuckled as he gathered some of the paper and put it back in his drawer along with the paper weights and pencils.

"C'mon old man, what if someone messed with th-"

"You just want to spice things up in soul society for no reason don't you? Even I agree it's been a bit boring for a while but blaming a captain for disguised reports? That too someone like Aizen?" Yamamoto said as he slowly got up and walked towards the open balcony and breathing in the fresh night air.

Shunsui pouted as he walked over too, staring at the moon in a sour mood, as if it was responsible for all the wrongs of his life.

"But how did they build a castle in just 2 months? The report before the last one was from 2 months ago and it didn't have a castle in it." Shunsui stated.

Yamamoto just shook his head at his student's idiocy and said,

"Go back Shunsui, have a drink or something. You are making this old man stressed."

Shunsui stared for a few more seconds before leaving with a huff. Before he could walk out the door Yamamoto added,

"And quickly find that Shihoin clan's member from your squad that did the experimentation on the boy. That mad man might have a way to turn around that child's blindness."

Shunsui didn't bother to ponder upon how Yamamoto knew that Ichigo had turned blind before smirking at the man and walking out, giving a nod to Sasakibe who was as usual grumpily standing outside.

Yamamoto slowly made his way back to the desk, completely intending to clear his table off the rest of the reports. His student really was too anxious.

Being anxious was good in battle but not good in normal life.

A figure across Yamamoto's building smirked as it casually walked off, his white hayori fluttering brightly under the moon.

* * *

**-World of the living-**

Loud banging on the front door woke Kisuke Urahara up. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he slowly left his futon and exiting his room, picking up his cane on the way.

The banging got louder and more urgent and Kisuke narrowed his eyes and said "Coming~" in his usual cheery tone.

But that person better have a good reason for waking him up like that at 5 AM.

He walked between his musty shop before reaching for the Shoji door with the key in his hand and opening it as a small girl ran in fast.

"Close the door!" She yelled as she fell on the floor and immediately scrambled behind to reach verandha of the inside door.

Sensing her distress Kisuke looked her over to check if she was dangerous before nodding and closing the door without arguement.

"What's wrong?" He calmly asked as he first noticed that she was a girl who was Ichigo's age. (Young Ichigo, the one in world of the living)

The girl in pigtails, dressed in a dark blue frock gulped before saying,

"There was a monster after me!"

Kisuke would have laughed if he wasn't a shinigami.

"What kind of monster? What did it look like? Did it have a mask?" He asked, his hands already on his cane.

The girl, first surprised that the man believed her, quickly pulled herself together as she said,

"Yes! I-It had a white mask a-and was about 4-5 meters tall! It was huge and it h-had big brown claws an-"

"That's enough. But there is something I want to ask . . . is there any way you might know Ichigo Kurosaki?" Kisuke asked, observing her sharply.

Soon the girl's face turned into a sneer like smirk that looked a bit out of place on her tired face. She looked away with a huff as she said,

"That orange headed twerp? The one that freaks out when the school bell ring?! Haha! Of course I know him, he is in a grade lower than mine."

Kisuke frowned as he opened the door to his shop and told the girl to stay in as he took 'care' of the monster. The girl argued for his safety at first but 1 glare with a bit of killer intent and she was down.

But he didn't worry about her. He was more worried about the fact that Ichigo had told that most of his friends in the world of the living, besides Uryu, had received their spiritual awareness when they were in highschool.

So how had the timeline changed so much already?

What he didn't notice was the girl's smirk turned into a neutral look as she whispered,

"This time I won't stay away from those monsters dad. I finally found someone who would help me this time . . . "

**(she might be a OC, might be not ; ) keep guessing guys~ of course I know who she is btw~)**

* * *

"Oh no . . . " Shunsui said as he ran a hand over his face, tired of the mess they had gotten themselves into.

Beside his desk stood Nanao with the same look on her face as both of them stared at the document on Shunsui's desk.

They both had been planning to close up the office and go back to their barrack rooms to finally have a good nights rest when a squad member had ran into the office, clearly tired.

And the squad member was none other than Takeru Kobayashi. He had given them the pink coloured document in his hand without a word and they knew it was something they wouldn't like.

Because a pink coloured document usually meant either dead or missing.

Shunsui looked at the picture of the Shihoin on the document and he didn't fail to notice the [m i s s i n g] stamp over the guy's photo. The document was 10 years old and now the particular shinigami was declared dead or lost in Rukongai (which also meant that they could never find him).

"I was searching for a person who matches the clues we know and when I found nothing in the 'currently alive' sections I thought 'why not dead?'. But I had actually not expected to find it in there." Takeru explained with a sigh.

Shunsui shook his head as he placed the document over the other useless documents on his desk and asked,

"So the time line in which he had gone missing matches Ichigo's age. Plus the report says he was quirky in some ways, so there might be chance he was a mad scientist. But I can't say for sure, cause mostly all Shihoins are quirky."

Nanao sighed as she walked over to a torch in the far corner of the room, blowing it off and she said,

"Accept it captain. We cannot find Ichigo's maker cause for all we know he is most probably dead and about the Las Noches thing, we know that Aizen had mentioned it in his report so now we are at a dead end there too. Accept it, that what is done, is done."

With that Nanao walked out the room, Takeru following her shortly.

Shunsui watched them go before deciding to give up as well.

* * *

Masaki closed the door to Yuzu and Karin's room and made her way through the hallway. Isshin was sitting on the couch, deep in his thoughts, the TV not even playing anything other than black and white scribbles.

"At least switch off the TV and go to bed or switch on the lights." Masaki said as her hand went for the living room light switch on the staircase wall.

"Masaki . . . did we do the right thing?" Isshin asked as he turned in his seat and gazed at Masaki intensely.

Masaki didn't bother turning on the lights now as she walked over to the couch to sit beside Isshin.

"What do you mean?" She asked softly, giving him a reassuring pat on his back.

"Well . . . we have blocked all our three children's reiatsu. But what if in the future, they will need it? What is something big happens and they will have to get involved in it? What will they do then? Especially when I cannot even sense reiatsu and all of a sudden something happens to you?"

Masaki stared at Isshin for a few long moments before she chuckled and shook her head fondly.

"What's so funny Masaki? I am serious-"

"First of all Isshin, the chances of something like that happening are very low."

Isshin was going to argue but was cut off as Masaki said,

"But, if something like this did happen, I want you to have faith in our kids Isshin. I am sure they will figure something out. And I promise to be by my kid's side even in their hardest times. I will be there for them during their emotional and physical challenges. I don't plan on getting anxious over the chances of me dying."

With that Masaki got up and walked over to the still shimmering TV, switching it off and walking into their hallway, on her way towards the bedroom.

Leaving Isshin dumbfounded to his thoughts in the dark living room.

* * *

**So first are the (non-aggressive) rants then replies!**

**P.s. I know I made the story short for the rants but I wanted to get this over with haha . . . please don't kill me : (**

**[WARNING: PAIRING RANT]**

**OMG I AM SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SORRY TO THOSE WHO ARE ASKING FOR AN ICHIGO X YOURICHI FIC!! I REALLY AM SORRY, I SERIOUSLY AM BUT I AM NOT DOING IT.**

**Okay****, now that you know how sorry I am, here is the reason: I do not see Ichigo with Yourichi that way. I have never seen them that way nor I ever will. I always see them having a great student and teacher relationship, even KINDA a mom and son relationship.**

**I**** know age doesn't matter in soul society at all and I am not saying that on its basis. I am talking about how their relationship is in manga and the anime. I am going to give girls who actually HAD chances with being in a relationship with him a chance. It can be anyone, Orihime (not too sure tbh), Rukia, fuck it even Chizuru has more chances (in my fic) than Yourichi or Soi-fon. According to me, characters like Yourichi, Soi-fon or Unohana are either teacher figures or elderly (not old kind of) and respectable figures.**

**[WARNING: STORY RANT]**

**Some are worried about where the story is going, I do actually have a plan (even an ending if I don't decide to change it). So I have made him blind for a while (also talking away his swords) cause as a writer it's my job to make the character suffer . . .**

**ALSO to make his skills develope more. Turning him into a child will raise less suspicions on him. As you can see it's clearly working in a way. Plus I want him to sharpen his hearing senses, reiatsu control, hand-to-hand combat skills, using different weapons, hiding himself pretty well, lying skills, infiltration and more stuff like that. And all of that can be done by reducing his reiatsu, taking away his zanpaktō and making him blind. For a while at least****.**

* * *

**Replies~**

**MGonz201 (reply on chapter 12): Thank you do much for the compliment!! And as you have read from my rant earlier I am sorry I am not doing a IchiYori fanfic : ( But I am sure I am going to chose someone extraordinary! Someone you might not even guess lol ; )**

**MGonz201 (reply on chapter 11): Thank you for the compliment, again haha! And sorry again that I am not doing a IchiYori fanfic : (**

**MGonz201: Thank you so much!!! But sorry, I am not doing an IchiYori pairing : (**

**777torn777: Well I am a risk taker haha XD**

**merry1995: I am trying different pairing than the canon actually. It _may _be Ichihime but I am not too sure haha! I have a few others in mind but not anyone like Soi-fon or Yourichi, so sorry for than : (**

**hadatko28: I KNOW I AM EVIL AND I AM SORRY :((((((( BUT I will make sure some happy things _do _happen!! ; )**

**Sweetsmaster04: Glad to make you happy!! Next chapter will drop soon enough! : )**

**XxxgoblinslayerXD69: Most of your answers relating to the events of _why this at all _and the _pairing_ have been answered in the rants haha! Yes, I will make sure not to die!! XD And I will make sure to make more chapters like these! *says with fire of determination in my eyes***


	14. Chapter 14

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**It might go a bit slow paced for the next few chapters cause details are important when you need to signify how two people developed a bond like that. It can be a friend, guardian, teacher, anything. You would need to know what happened that they got to that point so that's what is going to happen between Ichigo and the Shiba clan (not always) so yeah~**

**Now**** all of this is because there is going to be a timeskip in this chapter. Don't worry though!! All the small importance stuff that he had been going through in between the timeskip will be thoroughly mentioned in MANY flashbacks!**

**[KINDA IMPORTANT?]**

**Okay, now I have focused ALOT of stuff around medicine in this chapter cause I kinda forgot that our boy Ichigo is actually a fully fledged doctor lmao. I re-read the whole fic and kinda realised he never really showed his talent in that field so yeah there will be some stuff related to medicine and from next time I won't forget to use this skill time to time.**

**Have patience for the next few chapters haha~**

**Replies in the end~**

**Ciao~**

* * *

**-10 months later-**

"Ichigo! Ichigo!" Fuku yelled throughout the compound, not finding the boy anywhere.

But it wasn't that she was searching for Ichigo. No, she was searching for Ikumi and the last time she had seen the woman she had been with him.

"Ich-"

"I am here, stop yelling." Ichigo said from behind her.

Fuku gasped as she turned around and narrowed her eyes, taking in the normal clothes he was wearing.

They had been forcing him to try and wear a kimono or a yukata at least, but somehow he _always_ got his hands on clothes similar to the ones he was wearing on his first day. Who in the world from the clan was giving him these clothes she didn't know.

But he simply refused to wear anything a clan member would wear, saying they are uncomfortable.

They were pretty comfortable if you aren't doing parkour all over the compound. Which she was sure the kid didn't even know how to do.

But the undercover pranks he performed spoke otherwise.

"You need to stop doing that." She stated with a huff.

Ichigo didn't know if she was talking about him not wearing fancy clothes or him being able to sneak up on her again. So he decided that the later suited his mood of conversation.

"To be honest I don't even try to sneak up on you Fuku san. You are just too distracted all the time." Ichigo muttered.

Before Fuku could argue he said,

"If you are looking for Ikumi san then she is in my room. Checking for sharp edges . . . again."

Fuku held her forehead with a sigh. She had been looking for her master for an hour. A whole freaking _hour_. And she was blunting edges of a blind kid's room for the 3rd time in the month.

"Fine I will go find her. It's feeding time anyways." Fuku said as she walked past the boy and towards the door only to stop in between and glance back at Ichigo.

"You ate your food right?" Fuku asked.

Ichigo's shoulders tensed but that was the only sign he gave away. He didn't dare to look behind as Fuku's smile turned into a furious one.

"You didn't eat" It wasn't a question.

"W-Well the reiatsu replenishing medicine captain Unohana gave me looks enoug-"

Ichigo was cut off by a fuming Fuku who said,

"Eat. Your. Food. Now."

"But-"

"You want me to force feed you?" Fuku growled out.

And this was the part where Ichigo felt that looking like a kid came to a disadvantage. Plus his first experience with 'force feeding' in the compound had been . . . bad.

"You wouldn't want a repetition of 'that' day would you Fuku san?" Ichigo asked, but his nervousness was clearly present in his voice.

"Oh, but the only one at the disadvantage would be you. Nothing will be wrong with me Ichigo~" Fuku declared happily as she took a step forward and Ichigo took a step back.

* * *

**-Flashback to the day Ichigo woke up-**

_It was a surprisingly cold night, Fuku noticed. She got up from the verandha that faced the garden and walked into her room, closing the door behind._

_She looked at her room and sighed. It was a mess, just how the whole day had been._

_There was a knock at her room's door and she the worker said_,

_"You have been called to have dinner with Ikumi sama today Fuku san"_

_'Huh?' Fuku thought as she walked out the door and with a small thanks to the worker she was on her way to Bunzō's room._

_It wasn't uncommon for Ikumi to invite Fuku when she was having her usual dinner with Bunzō but she had been thinking that her master and her brother would want to talk to Ichigo at dinner. Asking him more questions._

_Basically interrogating the hell out of the kid._

_It had been her opinion to let the kid rest cause so much had happened with him but the other two had denied her request quickly. So she had not been expecting to be called as well._

_Fuku knocked on Bunzō's room three times respectfully before entering with her head down._

_"None of that shit Fuku, you know we don't like that!" Ikumi said as she chuckled._

_Fuku looked up with a pout as she took in the room. A small traditional japanese rectangular table had been set up in the lit up corner of the room and food had been served as well. On one side of the table were Ikumi and Bunzō and on the other was Ichigo, an empty space beside him. In the far corner of the room was Nozomi, biting onto her own food served in a small metal bowl with another bowl of water beside it._

_And of course the awakward tension on the table could have been cut with a knife._

_"C'mon Fuku, the food will get cold!" Ikumi called out._

_Fuku obeyed silently as she sat down and ate peacefully. Hearing Ikumi and Bunzō argue about something completely irrelevant after every minute or two._

_She noticed Ikumi eating her way through food as if she hadn't eaten in years. Pregnancy did that to you._

_And it wasn't a pretty sight._

_Bunzō and she herself didn't mind it but her eyes fell on the blind boy beside her who was just poking at the piece of fish with his chopsticks and did he somehow look pale?_

_She agreed that the way Ikumi was eating was just disgusting but the way he was reacting to it was just too much. Plus he couldn't see Ikumi anyways_ _so what was the deal?_

_"Is the food bad? Or you aren't able to use chopsticks because of being . . . blind? I can help you eat if you want." Fuku offered quietly._

_Bunzō and Ikumi did notice the conversation but acted like they didn't even hear a word for it._

_Ah, so she was their means of interrogation._

_"Um no, it's just . . . I a-am not really hungry?" Ichigo said as he quietly put down his chopsticks with a guilty frown._

_That was when Ikumi and Bunzō looked at him in shock, as if he had committed treason._

_"You can't be not hungry after sleeping for a week?!" Ikumi exclaimed._

_"I know it's not normal but I just- I really don't." Ichigo stated with a weak shrug._

_But Bunzō observed there was more to it._

_[I__chigo's pov__]_

_He felt sick._

_The thought of food made him sick._

_The thought of eating when so many out there were dying from hunger._

_He knew that this was just his memories resurfacing in some sort of sick PTSD way. But he just couldn't forget._

_He knew that it wasn't happening right now. He knew that it was just his imagination. He knew he was being stupid and he needed food in his system. He knew that currently everything was normal and the war was yet to come._

_But the images of people fainting from lack of food, throwing up acid and blood because there was nothing else in their body. Those same people refusing the stocked up food because they said 'The ones with more reiatsu will need it more. They even have chances of actually helping in the war . . . '_

_He just couldn't sit here and eat. He couldn't do that at all._

_[end__ Ichigo's pov__]_

_"At least a little?" Bunzō asked._

_He had long since noticed the boy's tense posture and pale facade that clearly stated that the boy was in no condition for a hearty meal. It would surprise Bunzō if he took more than a few bites._ _He wasn't a person to force feed._

_But Ikumi and Fuku didn't notice that. No, they actually hadn't noticed anything since he had said that he wasn't hungry. Their womanly instincts kicked in and that was when everything took a turn for worse._

_First they verbally (through arguement) forced him to eat a few bites which he swallowed like he had sandpaper in his throat_ _and the worst part was they could see the disgust on his face._

_It offended Ikumi and Fuku more than anything, that someone didn't like Shiba food. That's when they decided it was best to feed him by themselves._

_If Ichigo could then he would have ran and easily sneaked out of the compound but being the well mannered kid he was and also considering that they had taken him in without much of a fuss, he didn't move and let them feed him . . . forcefully._

_Of course he tried to tell them that he couldn't eat more, emphasis upon the word 'tried'._

_Even Bunzō tried to help him out. But in the end they had totally cleaned off his plate of food by feeding it to Ichigo before they could eat their own._

_A servant was asked to take Ichigo back to his room while the other three ate their food in silence. Ichigo walked out muttering something about stubborn Shibas as Nozomi closely followed behind him._

_"He didn't look well. You should have let him eat only the amount he wanted. Besides he had a very rough day so it could have been natural he wasn't hungry." Bunzō had explained as he had finished his food and gotten back to his paperwork._

_Ikumi had pondered upon that thought for less than a few minutes and had gotten back to her casual conversations of the day with Fuku. While Fuku kept glancing at Bunzō in the other corner of the room only to some times to see him deep in his thoughts, paperwork forgotten._

_So by the end of the dinner she had a instinctive feeling that she needed to apologize to someone._

_"Sleep well Ikumi sama" Fuku said as she softly closed the door to Ikumi's dark room._

_It had been her idea to have Ikumi's room shifted from the room beside her own to next to the clan head's due to the fact that Ikumi was currently in more danger and had more chances of being injured. If that happened then the clan head was more than capable of protecting her rather than Fuku herself._

_With a sigh she started walking towards her own room. On her way she heard small taps resound through one of those rooms. They sounded like . . . animal paws?_

_'So this is his room . . . should I apologize? I don't expect Ikumi sama to do that so maybe I should do it myself?' She thought as she continued to stare at the shoji door._

_Making up her mind Fuku knocked on the door._

_But received no response._

_She knocked again._

_Not a word._

_This time loudly with a small "Kid?"_

_Not even the wind blew._

_A soft bang with a "You cannot possibly fall asleep that fast?"_

_Nothing._

_Okay now she was angry._

_"Kidddddd?" She asked loudly._

_She heard Nozomi sniff at the door from the other side with a whine, telling she wanted to meet whoever was outside._

_So even the fox was awake but the kid wasn't?_

_That was all she needed before she flung the door open with a scowl. She might be timid and patient but she didn't like being totally ignored. Especially when she had done nothing wrong._

_She paused in her thoughts as she realised she actually had done something wrong._

_'But that isn't the point~' She whined in her thoughts as she glanced into the dark room._

_"Ichigo, I know you might want to sleep but I wanted to talk to you about something" Fuku said as she walked towards the righthand corner of the room and using the matchstick beside the lamp she lit the room up dimly._

_She turned around and saw the boy still sleeping, tangled up into his blanket. She chuckled at the naïve scene in front of her before walking towards the futon and sitting beside it._

_"C'mon Ichigo, wake up. You know, Shibas are stubborn as hell and they don't try to apologize more than once. So if you ignore me now then I won't be sorry later." She said playfully as she reached out and__ poked his shoulder lightly._

_The only response she got was a groan as Ichigo pulled the blanket closer to him, in an attempt to cover his head._

_"Don't you dare fall back to sleep!" Fuku said as she pulled his arms this time, not allowing him to pull the blanket._

_But what surprised her was that he didn't respond in any way this time._

_"Ichigo?"_

_No response again._

_"C'mon day something so I know you are awake. I can't even tell if your eyes are open because of those bandages."_

_Nothing, not even a twitch that might indicate he was just acting._

_Then was when she started panicking slightly._

_"Hey, are you okay?"_

_No response._

_Her mind quickly went into observation and medical mode, which she had at least minimal skills of._

_She noticed that his chest was rising and falling so that meant he was breathing and pretty much alive._

_That was a plus, she guessed._

_She saw Nozomi make her way towards his face and lick his nose but even the fox got no response._

_'So he is unresponsive but alive. But he isn't unconscious so how . . . '_

_'Fatigue' her mind supplied._

_Then she put her fingers on his wrist and noted, 'Irregular pulse'._

_He looked at his face again, as it scrunched up in some sort of pain._

_'Breathing__ problem'_

_But she needed more symptoms which she could only get if he was awake._

_So she knew she had to wake him up. Even if it meant forcefully._

_She yanked off the blanket and laid him straight on his bed. She then tried to shake him awake, this time a bit more harshly._

_Again no response._

_'So this is it huh?' She thought before she raised her arm and slapped him across his face._

_She expectedly waited for a fraction of a second for the boy to wake up and yell at her but something different happened._

_In an instant she found herself slammed against the floor with her hands being tightly held behind her back, her face pushed against the rough carpet. The force of the knee planted on her back was so large that she couldn't move an inch._

_"Who are you and what are you doing here? Who sent you?" Ichigo asked swiftly but his words seemed slurry._

_But just the thought that someone had misjudged her for an assassin wasn't crazy enough because when she realised that this was a 10 year old who wasn't even supposed to know what an assassin was, she panicked._

_"What do you mean-"_

_She gasped when the grip around her wrists tightened and Ichigo said,_

_"Answer my question firs-"_

_'Okay that's it!' She thought as she scowled deeply._

_"It's me Ichigo! Fuku! Fuku Shiba! You know, a person who is clearly older than you and it is unwise of you to throw them on the ground?! Yes, I am that person! Now get off me!" Fuku managed to grumble out._

_She felt the hands that were gripping her wrists loosen up a bit but they didn't let her go. It was as if he was considering her answer._

_But what was there to consider?_

_"Who?" Ichigo bit out slowly._

_At the sudden loose grip Fuku was able to turn her head enough to look at the boy and that was when she inspected his dazed eyes._

_He clearly didn't know what he was doing or what was going on around him. So all of this was on instinct?_

_The whole attack thing along with the questioning was instinct ?_

_She didn't even want to know what he would do consciously._

_'He doesn't even realize who he is talking to is he?' Fuku thought_ _with a mental sigh._

_'Confusion' Her mind supplied again._

_She looked back at him and saw that he wasn't able to even pay attention to what he was currently doing. His head kept falling because of his fatigue but he was trying his best to stay awake._

_'This is my only chance!' She thought as she removed one of her hands from under his grip and quickly struck a blow behind his neck, successfully knocking him out._

_She pushed the little boy off herself and got up. She sighed at the extra work she had gotten herself into in the middle of the night._

_This meant another trip to Unohana._

_"Somebody get in here!" She called out._

**-Flashback end-**

* * *

"So you thought your best option at that time was to knock me out?" Ichigo had sarcastically asked the next day when he had woken up and had been explained what had happened.

All Fuku had done was smile sheepishly at that time.

* * *

"You don't want that to happen again do you?" Fuku asked sweetly, but Ichigo was smart enough to notice the sadistic influence behind it.

"But why did you have to force feed me that day anyways?" Ichigo asked, not ready to back down.

Fuku took notice of the competitive tone and said,

"Hey, it wasn't our fault that you didn't tell us you were being starved for the last few months before you met us. You could have said something at dinner too. But noooo, all you did was say you weren't hungry after a week of being unconscious. Of course we will force feed you!"

Ichigo looked (faced her basically) with what Fuku could make out was a failed attempt at a small scowl, then turned around, intending on walking away but he didn't do so until he said,

"Well you don't just knock out someone who was experiencing refeeding syndrome."

'Of course his medic ass would know something like that. He hasn't even told us how he knows so much about medicine!' Fuku thought as she saw him walk away.

"Well I didn't know you had refeeding syndrome that day. Unohana was the one that told me. Hmph!" After saying that, Fuku walked off with a huff as well.

**(Refer to P.S.1 at the end to know what refeeding syndrome is. It isn't a permeant thing, it's something temporary and is usually cured in a month or two** **if the person is willing enough.)**

* * *

Ikumi gathered the shaved pieces of wood from the floor and put them into the small jute bag beside her. She then looked back at the small table and ran a hand over the edge, not finding it sharp in any way.

Her eyes drifted to the book that was lying on the table. It looked like a journal.

What would a blind kid write in a journal?

She picked it up without giving it a second thought and smiled when she saw its contents.

'He is practicing writing? These look more than good enough for a 10 year old' She thought as she read over some of the basic sentences.

Well _some_ basic sentences and some in other languages she did not understand. But at this point in time she had stopped questioning him of these things. She assumed he just knew it because of being an experiment.

She looked over the pages again, thinking she might understand _something, _but in the end she put the book back on the table with a sigh.

At first when Ichigo had arrived, she was thinking that he was some kind of snotty kid with no sense of responsibility and was happy to be adopted into a rich clan.

But soon her thoughts changed and she found it annoying that he wasn't what she thought he was.

At all.

He would help around whenever he could even if he was blind. He would try his best to talk to everyone and befriend them. Everyone around the clan liked the kid. He was the first calm, collected and shy Shiba.

He knew clan manners and had the ability to understand politics from god knows where. He was also a great reiatsu sensor.

But the kid had something against Kukaku and Ganju for some reason. Whenever they would try to talk to him he would end the conversation as soon as possible and walk away. It was weird.

But that wasn't the only thing that was weird about him.

Yes, she had noticed something was different about him. She wasn't an idiot.

If the way he had instinctively attacked Fuku that day wasn't anything . . . he was different in many more ways.

He seemed to too mature for a 10 year old was the first thing she had noticed. He learned how to walk blind in just a few days and he also learned how to live by himself in his room without needing any help to search for objects. He had then learned the basics of braille in 7 months which usually take a year. So he was a fast learner, she had concluded.

But that wasn't it either.

She also noticed how his face would slightly twitch towards the direction of a hidden Shiba guard whenever it made a move, telling her that he had always known where the guards were standing since his first day in the compound. No normal kid should be even able to sense them and the kid knew about their each and every movement.

She also noticed his tense posture, always ready for anything from any direction. It was something only veterans were supposed to have. Not kids.

Not even experimented kids.

She acted obvious to his behaviour. He knew that she knew that he was hiding something. But somehow a silent agreement had passed between them.

She thought it was something painful. Something so painful that the boy couldn't even talk about it. But on the other hand she thought she was looking too deep into this.

She had never lived with someone blind before so maybe it was his instinct to stay alert. Or maybe this was just a new environment for him.

But her doubts had increased for the past 10 months he had been here.

And they were at their peak on the day her son was born.

* * *

**-Flashback to a month earlier-**

_She and Ichigo had been sitting in the garden since morning. Ichigo was reading a pocket sized book of some kind. There weren't many books in braille so he didn't have much variety. And she was stitching a navy blue scarf that she had been working on since the last 2 months._

_This was something she and the kid had been doing for a month. This small garden was just the entrance to the Shiba forests and for that reason alone mostly nobody came here. Shiba forest wasn't a place that can be mapped. Nobody was able to do that job for some reason._

_So you were good unless you leave the quarters of the safe garden or travelled more than a kilometre into the forest._

_Deeper than that and you were considered lost forever unless you have ample amount of reiatsu to become a beacon. That way anyone would be able to track you._

_Somewhere in between, Nozomi, who had been sitting on kid's lap the whole time had gotten up and started walking towards the treeline. The kid had snapped his book shut softly and had started walking towards the forest after few minutes of noticing she hadn't come back. But he didn't try to enter the forest, knowing he could potentially get lost._

_"It's okay" Ikumi said._

_He turned his head back towards the direction the voice had come from. He had kind of forgotten that Ikumi was still with him. Of course that would happen if all he had to to was get used to her spiritual pressure._

_"What?" He asked again._

_"Go after her but don't go deeper than a kilometre alright?"_

_After a few seconds or so of staring (which she always found creepy even though she had gotten habitual to it) he casually shrugged walked into the treeline in front of them, that led to the Shiba clan forest._

_Muttering a small "Don't go too far" Ikumi had gotten back to her work without thinking too much about it. She herself visited the forest alot of time. Sometimes even thrice a week. So unless he didn't go too far he would be okay._

_After a while she realised what the time was when the sun shined brightly right above her head, making the already heated atmosphere unbearable to the point that she wanted squad 10's captain to make it snow here._

_'Or that chick Kaien had taught would be okay too. She also had a ice zanpaktō right?' Ikumi thought._

_"Isn't it supposed to be monsoon?" She grumbled as she packed her sewing kit into a small wooden box and put it back into her satchel._

_She heard footsteps inside the house then a female voice called out,_

_"Ikumi sama! Bunzō sama is requesting you and Kurosaki san for lunch!"_

_"Alright I am coming in! Tell Fuku to directly go there instead of waiting for me!"_

_"Okay Ikumi sama!"_

_Ikumi heard the footsteps recede back into the compound and she looked back at the forest and yelled,_

_"Ichigo!"_

_But she didn't get a response._

_"C'mon brat it's lunch time!"_

_Again nothing._

_"If you aren't coming out because you don't want to eat then I will see to it that you will eat! So come out now!"_

_She felt her blood boil steadily, the hot weather not helping in any way._

_"If you don't come out this secon-"_

_She abruptly stopped as she heard ruffling of bushes and her whole body tensed up. She knew she was physically in no condition to fight plus she couldn't even land a kick in that kimono._

_But what she did know was she could land some damn good punches._

_Her thought process stopped as Nozomi slowly strolled out from the bushes and Ikumi rolled her eyes._

_"Getting worked up over nothing. Your battle senses are getting weaker Ikumi! What would you-" She stopped her self lecturing as she realised something._

_Ichigo hadn't come out with her._

_Worry started to well up inside her as she stood in the boiling weather and called out again and again and again only to receive silence. Even Nozomi looked worried._

_"Oh when I find you, you will receive your first beating since entering the clan and it would be anything but good" Ikumi drawled as she walked into the forest, Nozomi right behind her._

**-Scene change-**

_He was lost._

_But he had lost on purpose._

_. . ._

_Okay so maybe he had tried to act like he was lost and then tried to get lost on purpose before he actually really got lost._

_So yeah, he wasn't in a nice position to be._

_He had sent Nozomi back with a simple strip of reiatsu around her paws. The reiatsu was made to fluctuate and move in such a way that her legs would walk towards Ikumi without going anywhere else. Plus that reiatsu strip didn't take much reiatsu at all._

_And thus he was finally free to do something without anyone looking over him._

_He had expanded his senses again to check if anyone was nearby before he started to test out his skill level._

_And damn was he wrong when he had assumed his skill had reduced._

_Proof?_

_The seven trees that were blown out from their roots in a row just because of his kick were enough proof. He didn't even want to know what would happen if he had channeled reiatsu into that kick._

_The only thing he still couldn't test was his speed. He managed to do shunpo but only 17 times with his 'seeing' eyes on. More than that, and he would fall over in reiatsu exhaustion._

_Plus he couldn't use kidō unless it was Bakudō. It was just utterly impossible for him to use any Hadō and have enough spiritual pressure left for any other form of combat._

_He sighed as he did a recap of all the things he had tested;_

_1) Reiatsu control- unaffected (still perfect)_

_2)Hakuda- untested (need someone to test it on)_

_But hits are still strong in terms of body alignment. So basically unaffected._

_Still, human opponents are better than tree stumps to test Hakuda skills._

_3)Hohō- normal running speed unaffected (if anything it kinda increased because of his body size)_

_But shunpo is highly affected and it sucks._

_No of Shunpo that can be performed with 'seeing' eyes on = 17_

_No of Shunpo that can be performed without 'seeing' eyes = 30._

_Note (with experimentation): Using these two at different times doesn't mean you can use them one after another. Needs at least 10 hours of time for replenishment._

_4)Kidō- highly affected._

_Only Bakudō can be performed, even doing so for a few times affects reiatsu amounts. So Bakudō usage is for emergencies._

_Hadō- Cannot be performed at all._

_5)'Seeing' eyes- Also affected._

_Can be used only for 1 hour straight._

_He will have to wait 10 minutes for reusing. Even after 10 minutes of waiting, he can use it again only for 15 minutes more._

_To use again properly, he has to wait 2 hours._

_Honestly it wasn't so bad considering he didn't have the reiatsu he had earlier in any way._

_But it was so much worse if compared to his prime time._

_He sighed again as he laid down on the grass and stopped letting reiatsu into his eyes. He knew his time limit now, so using it any more than that and his eyes would bleed again. He certainly did not want that to happen again._

_He had been out here for hours. Testing and analyzing his skills. He was pretty sure that he was lost._

_And currently he was drifting off to sleep on the soft grass. The trees were not letting in the harsh sunlight so the weather was perfect too._

_He knew shouldn't fall asleep now, but he did anyways._

* * *

_Ikumi held on to the branch desperately as she took another step forward._

_'This is ridiculous' she thought._

_'If even after all this yelling he isn't responding then maybe he is unconscious. That's all I can come up with.'_

_But that thought made her worry even more. What could have happened to him?_

_She looked up at the sky and noticed that it was currently evening. So how the hell someone hadn't come here to help her?_

_"Ichigo! Where the hell ar-" She stopped midway as a sharp painful tug made it's way into her abdomen._

_Her eyes widened as she held onto her swollen stomach before she shook her head._

_"It's a month away . . . the baby is a month away. I am just exerting myself too much." She reassured herself firmly._

_'When I find that brat he is going to get punched to the ground!' She thought as she strode forward, flinching at the pain that shot up after every few minutes._

* * *

_When Ichigo finally came to, it was midnight._

_He ran a hand over his face and groaned at the thought of what was going to happen to him after he went back._

_'Ikumi san is going to kill me.'_

_He then tried to gauge his reiatsu reserves and found that they still haven't recovered fully considering he still hasn't visited his zanpaktō today._

_Suddenly he heard a small twig break. And sensing from the snap, the amount of pressure that made it break, it didn't seem like it was from an animal._

_Within a second he was standing up and two small knives were slipped into his palms from the bandages wrapped around his wrists._

_He was ready for attack._

_"Who's ther-" Ichigo stopped short as he felt the person's spiritual pressure._

_"Ikumi san?" Ichigo asked._

_He smoothly slipped the knives back into the wrapped bandages. He didn't want the woman who smoothed out the sharp edges of his room to know he had real weapons on him._

_Ikumi stepped out of the branches, her hayori/jacket in her hand, her hair a mess, the lime green kimono messed up with mud and leaves._

_But Ichigo didn't see that cause he couldn't. He didn't even realise she was unwell until he heard her talk._

_"I-Ichigo . . . brat where have you been-" Ikumi was stopped short as she suddenly felt all the energy drain from her._

_She squeezed her eyes as she fell on her knees, ready to hit the ground but soon two small pairs of hands held her shoulders. For a second she thought that it was Fuku, considering how gently the hands had caught her. But when she was laid on the ground she saw Ichigo's frowning face._

_"What's wrong Ikumi san?" He asked, genuinely concerned._

_"N-Nothing I co-couldn't handle brat . . . " She said and smiled but soon after she said that she felt another wave of pain shoot through her abdomen._

_Ichigo patiently waited till the current wave drowned away as Ikumi let out muffled cries, not bothering to keep them in anymore._

_Suddenly Ichigo felt an all too familiar tug at his hand and grimaced. He wasn't so sure that his hand would survive today._

**-Ichigo's Flashback inside this flashback-**

_"Kurosaki Ichigo . . . " Rukia growled._

_Ichigo swallowed the lump in his throat as he faked a smile and asked,_

_"Yes?"_

_"Where is Renji?"_

_"Oh yeah, umm he is on his way?"_

_"Really?"_

_'Renji I swear you are going to get a beating from me if you don't come right now' Ichigo thought but his thoughts betrayed his expressions as he without missing a beat said,_

_"Really. He will be here Rukia, just hold out for a few more minut-"_

_"His fucking wife is in labor and he is nowhere to be found?! I don't care if we are in war! That fucking asshole has to be here!"_

_"Calm down Ruki-" Ichigo stopped short as the girl basically broke all the bones in his palm as she held onto it in pain and yelled._

_Technically as a doctor himself he was here to help out too but Rukia needed someone for support so Uryu was called to replace himself. The three of them, including Isane, were going to help in the birth but before anything Rukia wanted Renji to be here._

_From across the room Isane was giving him a pitying look as she stood along with Uryu who was helping her out with the tools._

_But the difference between Uryu and Isane was that Uryu wasn't here just because he wanted to help, he was actually trying his best to keep his laughter in._

_Ichigo glared at his 4 eyed 'friend' which in turn did nothing but make the boy laugh more._

_'If that pineapple doesn't come here right now, my whole arm is going to break and then I am going to beat him to pulp, that asshole-'_

_Ichigo's thoughts were cut off as he heard Rukja darkly muttering with a smile,_

_"I am going to cut off his balls. Yes, that's the perfect plan~ I will cut off his balls and me and my kid will live together happily ever after~"_

_That was when Ichigo knew that he was not needed in beating Renji up._

**-Ichigo's Flashback inside this flashback ends-**

_When the pain finally subsided she looked up again through her blurred vision and saw Ichigo looking at her with the most serious expression she had seen on his face._

_"How long has it been?" He asked._

_"How long what brat?" She asked, wondering if the boy really did know what he was talking about._

_"The contractions. How long have they been going on for?" He asked, now sounding kind of irritated._

_Ikumi didn't know if he was irritated because because she was taking do much time to answer or because she was trying to hide it or because she was not believing in his knowledge and abilities._

_"I w-went out looking for you a-at umm 12 PM I guess? Then I think they started around 3 or 4? So it's midnight now, then . . . 9 hours . . . oh my god it's been 9 hours what will we d-"_

_"Ikumi san, you need medic. Now." Ichigo warned._

_Ikumi scoffed and said,_

_"No shit Sherlock"_

_But the boy didn't seem to be offended in any way as he looked around, thinking of what they could possibly do._

_All the thoughts about Ikumi beating him up or how his skills were reduced or the fact that he was from a foreseeable future that could murder everyone were out of his mind. Right now his entire focus was on Ikumi who was nothing more than a patient in his eyes._

_"How can we get out of here? I am sure people are out to find us but they won't be able to track our location and I don't think that we are near enough for them to hear our yelling." Ichigo said._

_Ikumi thought for a second before saying,_

_"I wasn't doing this technique earlier cause I needed to find you first but now I can increase my spiritual pressure and use it as a beaco-"_

_"No. You are not doing that. The only reason why they can't sense us is because I don't have enough reiatsu and yours is getting completely used up by your body. You need all the reiatsu you have to stop the baby's reiatsu from fluctuating. If you have less than the baby, then his own will dominate yours and it will be all the more painful." He said firmly._

_Ikumi for some reason, felt that whatever the kid was spouting, made sense. He spoke with so much confidence and authority that you could have guessed he had earlier experience with this. Plus his arguement really did sound logical._

_'All those lectures with Unohana are paying off' Ichigo thought._

_"Then what are we going to do brat?" She asked, thinking he had something in mind._

_He was deep in his thoughts for a second before he snapped his fingers, as if he had a idea and then muttered,_

_"Okay, I know what we can do."_

_She watched as he removed the bandages that covered his forehead and eyes and then set them aside. Then he sat in a lotus posture and started meditating._

_"What the hell are you doing brat?" she asked but he said nothing and concentrated._

_Ikumi thought that he had finally lost it and she was going to try the beacon method when suddenly she heard him say,_

_"Shiba-shi Hanabi Inkan Sanjūni: Kaijō"_

**(Japanese wording:**

**"Shiba-shi Hanabi Inkan Sanjūni: Kaijō"**

**English translation:**

**"Shiba-clan Fireworks Seal 32: Release")**

_Her eyes widened at those words as suddenly the boy's pale skin, which she hadn't even realised wasn't his real skin colour, regained some of it's redness. This made him look overall healthier and less sicker than he had looked for the past few months._

_"Now this feels better" He muttered as he got up, stretched his arms and kneeled beside her with a content look on his face._

_But Ikumi suddenly had a burning suspicion which she knew she couldn't hold off. With strength she didn't know she still had in her, her arms reached out towards the little boy's face and with a quick flick of her hands she brushed away his bangs._

_She took in sharp breath at what she saw._

_There it was, at the center of his forehead, the Shiba-shi Hanabi Inkan Sanjūni. It was a seal that needs to be applied at birth of that soul or as soon as the person dies and appears in Rukongai. A day late and it won't work._

_It was just a small seal, 1cm in length, diamond shaped, light lavender colour, nothing too flashy. Someone might assume it was just some traditional get up. But it still held power. Power to store._

**(Yes, this 100% looks like the Byakugou seal but works a bit differently. I wanted a seal that wasn't flashy or 'too' much so I thought this would do. Plus I am terrible at creativity so I had to use the Byakugou seal instead of making my own design.**

**P.S. Those who don't know Byakugou seal's design, look it up. It's from Naruto.)**

_"B-But how do you have thi-"_

_"Ikumi san,"_

_The amount of sincerity and hope in his tone made her pause in her musings as she stared back into the kid's eyes. How he was staring back at her was something she didn't want to know. But what she did know was it looked and felt utterly creepy knowing he was doing that while being blind._

_"What is it?" she still asked._

_He bit his lip, a nervous frown taking over his features but after contemplating the situation again, he sighed and said,_

_"You know what this seal does right?"_

_She nodded dumbly and said,_

_"It's was originally used by Shiba fighters to store emergency reiatsu for events that might become dangerous. Later it was given to Shiba families that are going to dedicate their lives on the fireworks making field. They release those seals every festival to use the reiatsu to launch the fireworks."_

_He closed his eyes and nodded, as if he approved the answer._

_Then he asked,_

_"Before I do anything you would obviously want to know how I got this?"_

_She felt her anger flare up again. The kid was actually annoying her by being right! Can a person actually be so infuriating?!_

_"Of course I want to know brat! The Gotei didn't tell us anything about this seal of yours! Did they lie to us?! If they di-" Ikumi was stopped short as another wave of pain shot through her, making her eyes tear up just by the shear burden of it._

_She was thankful that the boy was quite until the pain passed away slowly. When it was finally over she felt even more helpless than before._

_She felt her eyes close. She was so damn tired and especially after walking around for 9 hours looking for the brat, she was done. She deserved to sleep for a few hours at least. If not hours, then days. Right now, sleep sounded like the best option. She could rest and then everything would go on again. Someone would come to help an-_

_Ichigo's small hand squeezed her own and she realised that the boy was still there and he was looking at her in disappointment._

_"Ikumi san, you cannot fall asleep."_

_"Brat, who are you to order me around?" She whispered harshly, the venom making its way into her voice._

_And just like a normal kid, she expected him to cry and whine and finally walk away._

_But of course this brat didn't do what normal kids would do._

_"I am going to keep this short and simple. I was born as a soul, I didn't die and became a soul like many. My parents were Shiba and that's all I know about them. I had this seal since birth. But I am still only 10 years old, not 100 because I was experimented upon, so I grew up like a normal human kid for 10 years. I know how to use this seal cause it's in my memory. The Gotei don't know about this seal cause I haven't told them and it's usually hidden under my bangs. I have been saving up some reiatsu for the last 8 months for emergencies like these. There, now you know everything. Happy?"_

_At the end of the speech Ichigo had to stop himself from gritting his teeth in anger. He never knew that he had become so fluent in lying._

_But he also knew he had to even if he didn't want to._

_He found the idea of himself getting beaten up by Ikumi san for lying about his seal more appealing than her baby dying_.

_He could never let anyone die on his watch._

_Not again._

_Ikumi, even though was currently confused and dazed she still went over the explanation as best as she could and found no fault in it._

_It was a perfect explanation? Yes._

_But it was too perfect._

_She still nodded and asked,_

_"So what are you planning to do? Even though you were saving up for 8 months, it's still not that much cause the seal only pulls from your available reserves during the saving time."_

_"I know some . . . basic healing kidō. I was going to use the seal's reiatsu as a beacon and my own for healing but I am going to do it the other way around."_

_She raised an eyebrow at that. The first option sounded more realistic and better since he had more reiatsu in his seal than in his normal state. So why would he reverse it?_

_Sensing her confusion Ichigo said,_

_"At first your health was at least stable. But now I think your contractions have gotten worse, haven't they?"_

_Ikumi grimaced, noticing how accurate he was. At first the contractions hurt only when they were occuring but now they left with a huge amount of rebound._

_"So would you allow me to do this? All I can do is delay them a bit but something is better than nothing . . . so would you?" Ichigo still asked, knowing if she refused, he would still heal her anyways._

_But having her approval would just make it easier for him to work and her to get better quickly._

_Ikumi met the kid's eyes with her own calculating gaze and even though those brown eyes were blind, they still held determination and above all, honesty._

_She remembered another person from her clan with eyes like his. Eyes that showed they would never lose at all. They would always win._

_She snorted and looked away as she said,_

_"What are you waiting for kid, do some healing and get some help!"_

_She felt the boy tense up from the corner of her eyes so she tried to look at him again. And she saw the boy give her a small genuine smile again for the first time in 8 months._

_'So that's it huh?' She thought._

_'All he needs is someone to trust him to make him happy.'_

* * *

_"Bunzō sama, reporting! Groups 1 and 2 have found nothing within a kilometre's range!" Group-1 and Group-2's leaders yelled out._

_"Bunzō sama, reporting! Groups 3 and 4 have found nothing within the 2 kilometre range!" Group-3 and Group-4's leaders yelled out._

_"Bunzō sama, reporting! Group 5 has found nothing along the treeline of the whole forest front!" Group-5's leader yelled out._

_"Bunzō sama, reporting! Group 6 has found nothing along the borders of the whole forest back!" Group-6's leader yelled out._

_Bunzō grit his teeth in anger as he ordered the groups to search again. The group leaders left in a silent shunpo, not waisting another second as they themselves were worried. Soon Bunzō's room was empty besides Fuku and the worker who had last seen Ikumi._

_"I am asking again, are you sure that Ikumi sama had told you she would be coming soon along with Ichigo?" Fuku asked._

_The worker was looking stressed by the same repetitive question but she replied with an affirmative everytime because even she knew how bad the situation was._

_Fuku closed her eyes at the same answer as she wearily whispered,_

_"It wouldn't have been such a big deal but right now a kid is with her and along with the fact that she is pregnant? There is no way we could delay anymore."_

_Bunzō agreed with her as he added,_

_"Plus the fact that she isn't becoming a reiatsu beacon means she is using it up. Which means something is probably wrong . . . in any other case Ichigo could have become the beacon instead but he has very little reiatsu. So if he uses it, he might put his own health in danger. So if Ikumi is in bad shape, I am sure that's why Ichigo isn't using his own reiatsu. Because at least-"_

_"-at least one of them has to be in good health if other is in bad . . . " Fuku completed with a sigh._

_But she reeled back up and said,_

_"Pardon me Bunzō sama, but someone has to become a beacon. They are deep inside the forest that isn't mapped and we have no other means to find them. It's a state to emergency Bunzō sama."_

_Bunzō nods as he completely understands what the woman is trying to say. But what was a normal 10 year old kid and a vulnerable woman supposed to do? They couldn't possibly have any other wa-_

_The whole compound tensed up as a wave of spiritual pressure hit them with full force. Their visions blurred for a second before they increased their own reiatsu to match this unknown one._

_Bunzō felt other reiatsus in the room spark and looked at the shadows of the room and observed that even the hidden fighters were shaken up._

_"W-What is that? Whose reiatsu is this?" The worker asked wide eyed._

_"I don't know . . . "Bunzō nodded truthfully as he followed the reiatsu's trail till he was outside the compound._

_"Whatever it is, we are safe cause it's outside the house." Bunzō added as he stopped sensing it._

_"That was-" Fuku stopped halfway as realisation hit her._

_"What's wrong Fuku san?" The worker asked worriedly._

_Fuku shook her head and stood up fast as she said,_

_"Bunzō sama, tell all the groups to track this reiatsu!"_

_Bunzō stepped back, shocked by the sudden conviction before he managed to ask,_

_"But why?"_

_Fuku smirked, as if she was proud of something . . . or someone._

_"That, Bunzō sama, was Kurosaki Ichigo's reiatsu."_

* * *

_"Damn kid that is one heck of a reiatsu wave" Ikumi grit out painfully but she was still smiling, keeping the mood light._

_But it wasn't working by the looks of it. The kid was too serious._

_Ichigo didn't reply as he concentrated on the healing kidō that he was supplying to Ikumi's stomach. Ikumi took note of boy's limping posture and the sweat that was covering most of his clothes now. He looked like he could pass out any second._

_"Hey kid, you can stop for a few minutes if you want. You have been going at it for 20 minutes. The reiatsu you are sending out is large enough for them to track us too, they will be here in a few minutes." Ikumi said softly._

_Ichigo stubbornly shook his head as a 'no' and said,_

_"No, if I stop now then it will be bad for you. The contraction you are going to get after I stop healing will be way worse than the previous ones. I am pretty damn sure you will need at least mild pain medication for that one. Which we will have only after someone comes to save us."_

_Outwardly she wanted to know how the fuck a 10 year old knew all this medical stuff. He said he only knew basics of healing kidō but even though his hands are above her stomach, the kidō was smoothly making pathways towards her baby._

_But inwardly, she was grateful. She was so damn grateful. If it wasn't for the kid's seal or his healing kidō, for all she knows the baby could have died._

_"Hey kid,"_

_Ichigo didn't respond but she knew he was listening._

_"thanks."_

_The only answer she got this time was him concentrating even more on the healing kidō._

_A few more minutes passed in silence as Ikumi let the kid work as she payed attention to the surroundings, it helped in ignoring the pain._

_She raised an eyebrow when she saw Nozomi curled up to her leg. Ikumi guessed it was the fox's way of providing comfort. But she would be lying if she said she wasn't intrigued by how the calm the animal was in this situation. She guessed even Nozomi knew that something important was going on._

_She then continued looking around. This way she would get distracted from the ache and she would also have more time to think about the recent events._

_'Why would he not inform the Gotei 13 about his Shiba seal? I mean, it would have been easier for him to get into the clan with it. They wouldn't have even asked for a blood test if they knew about that. That seal is strictly hidden clan knowledge.' She thought._

_But again, the Gotei 13 were a bunch of assholes according to her. And there was one thing she knew and it was that the boy wasn't an idiot. She had seen plenty of scenarios to know that. So he must have kept it for a emergency, she guessed._

_Suddenly she heard him hiss in pain and when she looked at him, her eyes widened at what she saw._

_"Ichigo! Your eyes are bleeding! Wha-"_

_"It will be fine." He grumbled out in pain without pausing the healing._

_But the two thin streams of blood dripping down his face didn't say 'fine' at all._

_"But kid what about yo-"_

_"If I stop your healing now then the other kid would be in a life-death situation. It would be fine if I lose my eyes permanently but I can't let another kid die instead."_

_Ikumi snapped her mouth shut at that arguement. He was right. Painfully right. He could lose his eyesight but it was better than losing a life._

_Inwardly Ichigo was cursing at himself for using 'seeing' eyes without thinking. He could have healed without using that technique but just as Unohana had said, a person who isn't born blind may try to use their eyes unconsciously even if they can't._

_Suddenly he felt a reiatsu signature enter the 1000 meter range he had set up. His eyes widened as he noticed that many more were right behind it._

_"Someone's here isn't it?" Ikumi asked as she had noticed that Ichigo was staring into a distance._

_Ichigo flustered up and said,_

_"M-My sensing skills aren't that good to be hon-"_

_Ikumi scoffed and said,_

_"Oh shut up. You sense our hidden clan fighters like they are a joke."_

_The boy sighed as he looked around before looking back at Ikumi and asking,_

_"Ikumi san, can you do me a favour?"_

_"Only if you stop calling me Ikumi san."_

_"Okay then Shiba san,-"_

_"Brat can't you just call me-"_

_"-i don't want you to tell anyone about my Hanabi seal."_

_Ikumi reeled back in surprise but before she could shake off his request brutally she considered the boy's position. For some reason, even she would have never told anyone about a seal like this if she had a chance to._

_A young kid who found out after some time of memory loss that he was experimented upon by a crazy Shioin clan member of your temporary guardian's squad, then he found himself in a hostile environment where they have sealed off most of his reiatsu and only allowed him to meet his zanpaktō for an hour per day? Then they throw him into a clan where everybody is loud and obnoxious and somehow his real family was related to the clan?_

_If she was in the kid's place she was keeping a seal like that to herself alright._

_Observing that she wasn't outright denying the request, Ichigo continued,_

_"It's something I want to keep to myself, at least for some time so tha-"_

_"Okay brat, keep it. I won't tell anyone."_

_He raised an eyebrow, clearly not expecting an answer like that. But who was he to turn down an easy offer?_

_He nodded firmly and said,_

_"I will be turning off my seal and then I can continue healing for a few more minutes. I am pretty sure they will be here before that."_

_"What if they notice your seal? I mean, it's at the centre of your forehead . . . "_

_"Nobody noticed for the last 8 months how will they do now? Besides, it's always covered by my hair."_

_She sighed, silently berating herself for not noticing it either. But she knew it wasn't her fault. Who will notice a small lavender rhombus when it's covered by bright orange hair?_

_Besides, she won't tell anyone about it anyways. The boy clearly wanted the seal to be something he had for himself but he had used it today for her._

_And she respected that greatly._

_She gave a nod of affirmation and saw him close his eyes in concentration. She had noticed how he hadn't stopped his healing even for a second, so maybe his reiatsu control was much better than she had anticipated._

_Suddenly all the colour his skin had gained was gone once again and he was left gasping for air, as if somebody had punched him in his guts._

_"You okay brat?!" Ikumi asked as she sat up held onto the kids arm tightly in case he fell over._

_"Don't touch me!" He yelled._

_Ikumi instantly flinched back in fear at the outburst as she stared at him. Ichigo saw as she laid back down but never let go of the tight grip on his arm._

_He sighed and then calmly asked,_

_"R-Right now, I need all the energy I have to continue healing and if you distract me, I won't be able to do it. So Shiba san, can you leave me arm?"_

_She looked him over again. He was in bad shape, but he could survive. Nodding slowly she left his arm and he continued healing until backup arrived in a few minutes._

**-End of Flashback-**

* * *

Ikumi sighed as she remembered the pain she had gone through after Ichigo had fainted. At that time she had not realised that his healing kidō was helping her through most of the pain. She was thinking that it was just for keeping her stable.

Thankfully that was when the guards had arrived. They had done a small check up on spot on both of them, her and the brat, and they were okay.

She had been especially glad the boy's eyes were okay.

She could have never forgiven herself if he had gone blind permanently on her watch. Especially if she was the reason.

Later that night she had given birth to a healthy baby boy despite the labour occuring a month earlier than the scheduled time.

She had named him Kaoru.

The boy had beautiful brown eyes and black hair just like her own but his face was just like his father. She wished dearly that her husband was alive but she knew he had died proudly on the line of duty.

It had only taken a week for her to recover from his death surprisingly. She was sure she would have fallen into depression but she didn't. And only a week after she recovered from his death she had discovered she was pregnant.

It had been a consolation of some sort, knowing his legacy would be carried on forward.

But some things still plagued her mind.

Like the strange boy that had made his way into the clan.

Just how she had promised, she didn't utter a word about his Shiba seal cause she understood why he had done that. But what about the rest of the stuff?

His sensing skills, his healing kidō, his reiatsu control and his ability to learn fast? But when she thought about it, all of this could be explained by the fact that he is an experimental product that is supposed to be good at stuff.

But what about his too in-depth knowledge in the medical field, unexplainable maturity, the tensing of his body as if he could be attacked any second of the day, how he relies more on instincts rather than relying on thinking as if he is confident that his instincts would suffice . . . something about it just doesn't fit in.

It would always seem like she was trying to fit a puzzle piece in the wrong fucking puzzle.

Her thoughts shifted as she heard a knock on her- Ichigo's door.

"Come in"

Fuku walked in and crossed her arms as she glared at Ikumi.

All Ikumi could say was,

"I can explain."

"I have been searching for you for an _hour_ Ikumi sama. There is nothing you could say that can explain this. For the record, I know where you were because I met Ichigo on the way and he told me you were smoothing out the sharp edges of his furniture. Again."

Ikumi just laughed sheepishly as she got up and dusted herself off. She gave the boy's notebook one last glance before looking back at Fuku and asking,

"Hey, what time is it?"

"That's why I was looking for you in the first place. It's Kaoru's feeding time. Oh from feeding I remember, Ichigo didn't eat his food. He probably gave it to Mizu and Kuzu again." Fuku said as both of them walked out of the room.

"Mizu and Kuzu? From what I know the three of them had hit it off since they had met right?" Ikumi asked.

"If you mean those two playing while Ichigo watched over them 'hitting off' then they hit off alright." Fuku ended with a scoff.

"Fuku . . . " Ikumi trailed off with a small frown.

Since the day Kaoru had been born, Fuku had kind of started hating the boy. Not literally but she just hated the fact that he was of more use to Ikumi than herself at such crucial time. Ikumi knew that it wasn't Fuku's fault. Even Fuku knew that. But the only difference between Fuku and Ikumi was that Fuku had not accepted it yet.

"Yeah yeah I shouldn't hate him cause he is just a kid. But seriously Ikumi sama, there is nothing_ kid _about him other than his body."

Ikumi rolled her eyes, having to start this conversation with Fuku was something she didn't want to do again. They had already done it many times before. And it _always_ ended up with them being on opposite sides of the rope.

"Tell me about their friendship Fuku. You roam around the compound much more than me so you know more right?" Ikumi asked, successfully changing the tooic.

"Yeah, they are the only kids his age that don't bother him much with his past. All the others just keep asking him questions. But what can we say, they are just kids."

"I had never thought that Ichigo would actually manage to make any friends of his age. At least the ones that _look_ like his age. Mizu and Kuzu might be young but they are 65 year olds. They just look 10."

"And yet somehow a 10 year old Ichigo is more wiser than 65 year olds." Fuku said and sighed.

* * *

Ichigo stopped in his tracks as he heard a conversation that caught his interest. He turned his head towards what he guessed was the other side of the verandha and felt signatures of a girl and a boy, teenagers most probably, talking worriedly. He focused in on the conversation.

"I wasn't able to hear anything inside the meeting but dad was in the meeting, he is a council member. He said that some Shibas were disappearing or going rogue to the point we can't even say that they were kidnapped." The boy said as he looked around to make sure no was watching.

"That's awful . . . what did he say we should do?" The girl asked, eyebrows furrowed anxiously.

"The council was told to that nothing should go outside the council room but dad was worried about me. He was asking me questions as if I was going to go rogue the next day. I might be rebellious but i wouldn't just go rogue." The disappointment in the boy's voice was clear.

"I know you well enough to know you won't go rogue or betray the clan."

"Thanks, it means alot."

There was a pause.

"But why did you tell me this? Aren't you just spreading word unnecessarily?"

"We-Well I just told you cause you were k-kind of important to me . . . " The boy said nervously.

"Really? How?" The girl asked, clearly obvious.

"Ah y-you see-"

Ichigo started walking again.

The conversation didn't hold anything important to him anymore and by the looks of it he shouldn't even be eavesdropping at a topic like that. But he wished the boy luck.

He was so deep in thought at the recent turn of events that he didn't notice someone making their way towards him. Sure he was on alert but he wasn't using his sensing.

That's why as soon as a hand touched his shoulder he grabbed and twisted it to the point that if he moved it even a bit more then it would break.

But somehow the person whose hand he had made immobile was perfectly calm.

"Now now Ichi chan, you shouldn't do that to an old lady right?" A playful shrill voice said.

Ichigo realised who he was talking to as he quickly let go of the wrist and said,

"I am sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going and you kinda startled me-"

"It's alright it's alright. Don't need to get riled up little one. Considering your condition I should have made you aware of my presence." The old lady said as she ruffled Ichigo's hair with the same hand he had almost twisted, showing she wasn't hurt.

Ichigo wasn't convinced.

If he didn't know better he would have accepted it. But he knew, even though the lady was old her hands never shivered. So when he felt her hands moving irregularly over her head he got worried.

"Will you at least let me heal you Chiyo sama?" Ichigo asked.

He felt the old lady pinch his ear. It didn't hurt but he tried his best to imitate a wince.

"Why did you do that?" He whined.

"I told you it's baachan. Not sama. We are from the same family. Now, I will only let you heal me if you always call me baachan. Without forgetting it in the future."

"Yeah yeah, just let me heal you Chiyo sa-"

He felt a glare over his head.

-baachan."

The old woman smiled and said,

"Yes. But not here in the middle of everyone's route. Let's go to my room and please unlike last time, refrain from saying it smells like old people."

"Well it does cause you _are_ kinda old." Ichigo muttered under his breath.

The old lady had heard it but chose to ignore it with a smile as both of them started walking towards her room. Ichigo walking slowly so the woman doesn't have to walk faster.

"I was looking for you cause you didn't come for your daily zanpaktō visit." Chiyo said on their way.

Yes, she was the one handling his zanpaktō visits instead of Bunzō. Not only because Bunzō was a busy man, but she herself had been intrigued by the child from the start. He was a weird one for sure.

Yes, they knew that the Gotei 13 had ordered for the clan head to handle the child's daily zanpaktō visits. But they were Shibas.

And Shibas did whatever the fuck they thought was right.

"Fuku san stopped me on my way here. Nagging me again for eating." Ichigo said with a small pout, somehow characteristically fitting on his face.

The old woman sighed and said,

"Well she only 'nags' you because she wants you to eat and be healthy. You can't gain back your strength just from these zanpaktō sessions. All you do is touch your sword for an hour. That only restores your reiatsu, not strength."

Ichigo sighed and said,

"I know."

* * *

**P.S.1: Refeeding syndrome occurs when you feed someone (who had been starving for a long time) food in amounts that normal people eat. It's symptoms are: Fatigue, weakness, confusion, irregular heart rate, etc. You usually start with small portions of food in form of liquids for people experiencing starvation or they may start experiencing Refeeding syndrome.**

**I may be going on a hiatus for a while because I am in 12th grade people! I need those good marks to enter a nice college. So if I don't post for a while, don't worry! I am not letting go of this fic anytime soon!****(•‿•)**

**REPLIES:**

**BBWulf: Thank you for understanding and appreciating!! : )**

**H0mer: So sorry but no! : (**

**Bellator Kurosaki: Thank you so much for understanding and also appreciating my story! And your story sounds so damn good too! But unfortunately I don't know much about the MonsterHunter universe:( But if I get on it sometime then I will definitely tell you! And I would actually follow that Yourichi idea but there is bit more time left until she shows up so there's that! : D**

**Leafy-tan: Maybe or maybe not ; )**

**deathshade37: Glad you enjoyed it!**


	15. Chapter 15

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH.**

**SIGH, I _know _I said that I would take a hiatus but I just can't! I am too invested in this story : (**

**So I will continue writing but if I consider the fact that I am not taking a hiatus this means that I might have irregular posting dates. Hope you guys don't mind!**

**Replies in the end, Ciao~**

* * *

Ichigo was always intrigued by Chiyo sam- baachan.

When Bunzō had told him that he won't be conducting Ichigo's zanpaktō sessions anymore he had been kind of disappointed. He never knew most of the Shiba in here besides Kukaku and Ganju so talking to the previous clan head itself had been fun while it lasted.

He still didn't know why each and every member of the Shiba clan had gone their own ways in the future, if what Kukaku had said was true that is.

From what he saw, the Shiba clan had very hard willed and honest members. Each and every person in this clan could give a advanced class academy student a good enough sparring match besides the kids maybe.

So what caused them to abandon the clan in the coming future in the first place?

So he had decided to get some answers from Chiyo baachan. She was the previous clan head and had been securing the position until a month before he came here. She had given up her position somewhere around the time her son had died, Ikumi's husband that is.

So the lady probably knew more about the clan's recent events. Bunzō would get suspicious if he asked too many questions. So he had planned to ask some to the old granny.

Besides the granny was _old _old. He even considered the possibility that she was older than Yamamoto itself. So he thought he could manage.

His plan was to at least befriend her at first. Not just for information but he really did want to know more clan members considering he may never see some again.

But their first meeting didn't go as planned.

**-Flashback-**

_"Shiba sama is in here." __The servant said._

_"Can you take Nozomi with you for today? I don't want her to be with me on my first session with someone." He said as he held out the small fox towards the lady._

_"Of course! Let's go cutie pie!" She said as she took hold of Nozomi and with a smile she ruffled Ichigo's hair and walked away._

_Ichigo frowned but didn't comment on it. For some reason every damn member of the clan didn't care about manners and there was no discriminative hierarchy between any member. A servant was treated with the same amount of respect as the clan head. There was no in between._

_And he personally didn't mind it. To be honest, he kind of liked that attitude because he himself was never known for manners._

_But if these servants were to go and even try serving someone in the Kuchiki or Shihoin clan . . . yeah they were done for. Byakuya had changed stuff in the future but currently the clan did not consider their clan members their own family even if they were._

_Hell, Byakuya did not even__ consider Rukia a proper sister until he had beated some sense into him._

_"Are you going to stand outside the whole day?" The old woman asked, standing near the frame of the now open door._

_The woman had tried to surprise him, it was obvious. But__ Ichigo had already sensed her and wasn't fazed. What did worry him was the fact that the second the lady had opened the door, the hidden guards had shunpoed away._

_Everyone had told him that the guards were for his protection and he would have believed that if he really was a kid. So he knew the guards were for keeping him in check._

_So now he could deduce only two things from the guards' current course of action._

_Either the guards trusted that he would not do anything to her_.

_Or_

_The guards knew she was strong enough to protect herself._

_And the first option seemed very unlikely._

_So the lady was strong enough to hold her own? Well obviously he was just a weak and blind kid in their eyes but the guards followed him even when he was around the current clan head. So was the old lady stronger than the clan head too?_

_Maybe she actually is-_

_"You get distracted alot don't you?" The lady asked cheerfully._

_Ichigo saw right through the cheerful facade. Something he had been proud of accomplishing with Kisuke._

_That guy smiled even if it was the end of the world. Literally._

_"No, I was just thinking." He said, thinking the answer would suffice._

_The lady said nothing as she turned around and walked back into her room. She sat at the center of the room on a purple cushion. Then she looked up and saw he was still standing there._

_"C'mon in. I don't want to interrupt your thinking but I am sure you can do it while touching your zanpaktō."_

_'Well at least she is lenient.' He thought as he walked over and sat in the cushion in front of her._

_"This room smells like old people." Ichigo said out loud._

_B__lunt insulting was a apart of his facade. He had lost the spark of insulting in the second year of war. Now he just used it as a fight tactic or gauging other's attitude. It worked well most of the time._

_"Ah well I am old."_

_And by the looks of it, he was right in guessing her personality._

_A full minute passed in silence. Ichigo wasn't a kind of person who felt awakward just from the lack of talking if it wasn't necessary. But he indeed was impatient._

_"Can you tell me where my zanpaktō are? If you haven't noticed . . . I can't see?" He asked, his tone changing into a questioning one at the end._

_"Ah, but can't you sense your zanpaktō? You have sensing skills of our head captain from what I know."_

_Now, Ichigo__ was many things._

_But stupid wasn't one of them._

_He knew that this woman wasn't just bluffing and probably had pretty good sensing skills herself to guess his own. But he somehow felt compelled to accept the truth. It was as if he knew that whatever he would say, the woman would know it was a lie._

_So he went along with it without a second's pause._

_"But somehow I still can't sense them. Maybe they are under a kidō barrier?" Ichigo politely asked._

_The woman hummed a playful laugh, impressed by his quick thinking. Then Ichigo heard her chant something. Then a second later he could sense his zanpaktō again, lying right behind the woman._

_"Yes, it indeed was under a kidō barrier. Here, you can have them back." She said as she laid two zanpaktō on his lap._

_So she was testing him._

_Well, like other skills that can be hidden with good acting and fake personalities, being a good reiatsu sensor wasn't something that can be covered up._

_So he decided that the woman already knew enough about his sensing skills so why hide them?_

_Ichigo held out his palms and touched both of his zanpaktō, instantly realising which was which. Even though the colour, shape and design of the sheath, hilt and guard of both the zanpaktōs were same, he still could somehow recognise which was Zangetsu and which was Shiro. It was another mystery about zanpaktō he didn't know._

_The second he had touched them he felt his spiritual pressure restoring slowly. But even after an hour had passed, meaning that their session had ended, he still didn't feel full enough._

_How could he anyways?_

_With only having 5% of space remaining he could only store so much. The rest remained empty and sealed off. It was a totally different feeling than the Gentei Reiin._

_This felt like trying to fill up a glass of water and keeping the glass inside a large and empty fishtank. That perfectly described it._

_"Well are you done?"_

_He looked up and raised an eyebrow. The woman had been quite as hell during the whole thing. He appreciated the quite but he still wondered why the she wasn't asking any questions._

_But he handed back the zanpaktō anyways and said,_

_"Yeah I am done. Thanks."_

_He didn't need the woman to know anymore than this. So that meant getting out of this room._

_He got up, dusted himself off and just when he was about to walk out the door he heard,_

_"You are not from anywhere around here are you?"_

_Ichigo slowly turned his head around, hoping he could see something. Something in the woman's eyes that said she was joking, just how her tone made it sound like. But even he knew he couldn't._

_Being blind hadn't been bothering him the way people were saying it should. But now he knew what they meant and it sucked._

_He really needed to see her face to know what she was actually thinking._

_Currently what the lady was saying could mean many different things and each and every one of them proved to be dangerous for his and everybody else's future._

_Somehow the woman must have looked through his mask and noticed his confusion and stress._

_"Hah, don't fret child. I am not someone who threatens. I know good intentions when I see them. So your secret is safe with me and only me." The lady said and smiled brightly as she got up._

_"What secret?" Ichigo asked plainly, but his stiff muscles would have been a give away to a trained eye._

_"Well it won't be a secret if I tell you." She said as she walked over to him._

_He was still frozen at the door even though he could hear her walking his way. Millions of thoughts, attack patterns, escape routes and excuses were running through his mind. But he was stopped short as a steady and bony hand softly ruffled his hair._

_"Now now child, I didn't mean to scare you. I know you mean no harm to anyone here. So whatever it is you are burdening yourself with, you can share it with me. But that is, of course only if you want to, I am not forcing you. Whatever it might be, It would stay inside this room." The woman said sweetly as she continued ruffling his hair._

_"Y-Yes . . . umm what's you-"_

_"It's Chiyo, Chiyo Shiba. But you will call me Chiyo baachan, Okay?"_

_All Ichigo was able to do was dumbly nod as the worker who had left him there, came back and guided him back to his room._

**-Flashback end-**

So yeah, that had _not_ gone according to his plan.

But he had still managed to befriend the woman in the following sessions. He couldn't ask some particular questions, not yet. But making her an accomplice was a big step in itself considering the lady hadn't quite given him her full trust yet.

Even though she always told him that she trusted him fully, Ichigo wasn't a kid, he saw right through the lie.

She trusted him? Yes.

But did she trust him enough to completely let him off the hook? No.

They always talked about anything other than what his 'burden' is or at least what she was thinking it is. But he wasn't ready to tell her today or any other day or actually ever at all.

So she didn't push the topic and he appreciated it greatly.

'But what kind of burden does she think I have? Is it my seal? Or something else?' At this point Ichigo had dived too deep into thoughts as he unconsciously kept absorbing reiatsu from his zanpaktō.

Chiyo had noticed how distracted the boy was today.

Well more than usual at least.

Normally his body tenses up whenever someone interrupts their sessions. But after a few more sessions she had noticed that he doesn't just let his guard up when an outsider enters.

He usually reacts to any kind of sound. And when she says any, she really meant _any._

"Child, did you sleep today? No, forget that. Did you sleep this _week_?"

The boy didn't respond, still thinking.

"Hey brat!" She raised her voice.

His head shot up as he innocently 'looked' at the old woman while Nozomi jumped a bit on his shoulder.

"What is it Chiyo sama?"

"It's baachan to you brat. I was asking if you slept this week."

'Damn baachan. Always catching up to lies as if they were nothing . . . '

"I slept fine." He still said.

"No you did not."

" . . . . Yeah, I did not."

The old lady sighed as she was about to start another rant on his health issues but Ichigo interrupted her and said,

"But I took naps baachan. I really did. Whenever I felt like my body needed to sleep I would do that to the point I am conscious enough but still I am completely resting."

"So you are basically telling me you took 20 minute naps when you should be sleeping for 8 hours straight?" She asked dryly.

"Well because of them I don't have dreams anymore. It's better that way . . . B-But before you say anything let me just tell you that if I did sleep then I would wake up because of those dreams. So basically trying is useless too." He explained.

The woman frowned and said,

"You know boy, it isn't completely ideal to refer to nightmares as dreams."

"It's not like I am telling this to someone else. You knew about it without me even telling you so what's the point?"

Then she started on her rant again. Telling him that he should tell someone about this problem before it became a big issue. If he was being honest with her then he would have just told her that his sleeping problems are at the bottom of his list of problems.

What was he going to do about his major problems like _Aizen_ ?

Or Yhwach?

Or Vizards?

Or Quincies?

Or Fullbringers?

Or his family?

Or his friends?

Or the Bounts?

Or the Shinenju?

Or the Gotei 13?

Or the Squad Zero?

Or the Soul King?

"Ichigo, you sure get distracted alot don't you?"

No he doesn't get distracted. He is always on alert. He knows how to attack back if someone attacks him. So what was she talking about again? Was it about his sleeping troubl-

"I am not talking about physical distraction, you don't have to worry about deflecting any attack if you are with me even though I know you are capable of doing it yourself. I am not going to attack or harm you so you can let your guard down. But what I am really talking about is how you didn't hear a single word from the lecture I have been giving you since the last 15 minutes."

The fact that 15 minutes had passed since she had started her speech did make him feel like he really was getting loose on his attention span. But there was something that bothered him more.

'And there she goes again. Saying things like this as of they were nothing.' Ichigo thought as he 'stared' at the woman through his bandages.

So she even knew about his combatant side? Did she even know the extent of that side of his? Or was she just bluffing? So how was he supposed to respond to that?

He decided he would do it just the way he had been doing since the first day.

Ignoring it.

"Sorry Chiyo sam- baachan, I will listen properly this time. Can you please repeat-"

"You know that I don't interfere in your life much Ichigo . . . "

The serious tone caught him a bit off guard but even when she noticed his slight surprise, she continued anyways.

"But I don't think I can hold back any longer if a 10 year old child thinks that it is completely normal to have extremely sharp battle senses instead of academic concentration to last him through a single lesson."

He didn't say a word because he didn't want to sound like a brat. He could say something. But only if his opinion wasn't opposing to hers because he thought that extremely high battle senses were completely normal for an adult.

But he was a kid in her eyes.

And obviously he can't tell her he actually _isn't_ a kid.

So he stayed quite.

It wasn't like she was correct. It would have been correct if he really was a kid. He was an fully fledged adult.

. . .

Well yes he was still a teenager because he hadn't aged at all since he was 18. But he was 27 according to human years. So he could consider himself a _kinda _adult.

His lips twitched up at the sudden memory he recalled.

Just about right now Ukitake would have started another lesson as to how he is still a teenager because he still has a teenage body and mind and how he should just accept the fact. While all of this would be happening, Shunsui would be in the other corner of the room laughing his ass off because he had already passed his teenage years which lasted 400-500 years.

Ah, how he despised that man. He also remembered showing Shunsui the irritation he had felt, with the use of verbal accusations everyday.

Which was just a fancy word for trash talking about Shunsui with Shunsui to Shunsui.

But he never meant any of it. Everyone knew that. Even Shunsui knew that.

Besides, How could he hate someone like that? Someone who treated him like his pupil? Like his own family? How could one really despise a man like that?

**_How could one let a man like that die?_**

"Ichigo!"

He took in a sharp breath as he raised his head again, imitating the action of looking at her. He had not even realise he had clutched onto the hilt of his zanpaktō so tightly that they were shaking from the pressure.

"I am sorry. What were you saying?"

"You got distracted. I hope you don't fall into another painful memory again. I am sorry if I triggered anything."

Ichigo just stayed quite at this point.

"And the battle senses thing, that theory applies to all age groups. Which means kids, adults and teenagers alike." The woman said, but now she sounded more amused than worried, as if she was changing the topic because she realised he was uncomfortable with it.

But what was worrying him was the fact that she had just read his mind.

"No, I didn't read your mind kid."

Okay, this was getting seriously ridiculous. Was he that easy to read?

"No boy. To be honest I can't read you from your facial expressions or body language at all. Which is strange, how does a kid have such a strong fake mask?" She asked with innocent curiosity.

He 'stared' at her for a few more seconds before he proceeded to calmly lift his zanpaktō from his lap and set them in front of him. He then slowly got up, Nozomi yipping a bit when he did so abruptly and then he started walking towards the door.

He was _fully_ intending to walk out the door and pretend that this _never_ happened.

Suddenly he heard her laugh softly and get up. But she didn't walk towards him, instead she walked towards her garden door, opening it and settling down at the verandah.

He thought that the conversation was over and both had silently agreed to never speak about it again. But soon she spoke and what she asked wasn't something he had been expecting in this situation.

"Boy, do you know what my zanpaktō's ability is?"

"Mind reading?"

She laughed as she tapped the space beside her, indirectly telling him to sit there. Which he did even though hesitantly.

"Do you know the abilities of your own zanpaktō Ichigo?"

"No."

"You are lying." She said flatly.

'What the hell?'

Ichigo stayed silent for a second, as if he was in some sort of deep trance before something clicked in his brain. Afterwards he just stopped paying attention to her. Completely.

He kept listening to the birds chirping nearby, clearly directing his concentration from her to the sounds around him. He only paid enough attention so that he knew when she spoke. He knew the woman couldn't read minds. But he also had a feeling she could do something similar to it.

"Ah, so you figured out how to counter my ability already? What a peculiar child you are. It takes some grown fighters decades to figure it out." She said, clearly amused.

"It was easy to figure out." He said as he sighed and played with the ends of the bandages wrapped around his eyes.

"So what ability is it?" She asked.

"I haven't figured that out. I just figured out I will have to stop making you my center of concentration when I talk to you."

"How did you guess that when you don't even know the ability?"

"Well whenever I stop paying attention to you, you always tell me to stop losing my concentration. So that means you need my full concentration on you so that your ability works. If I don't fully pay attention, you can only pick up a few things I guess."

The old woman stared at him for a second before smiling brightly and ruffling his hair as she said,

"Ah what a bright boy the clan has been gifted with!"

Ichigo waited till her praising was over and then asked with mild sarcasm,

"So are you going to tell me what ability it is or did you just want to make me curious and then make me die of curiosity?"

"Of course, I am not that cruel." She said, sounding offended but he knew she really wasn't.

"My zanpaktō's ability or _shikai_ as you may say, is called Kanjō-teki kabin. It means emotional sensitivity."

**(Japanese wording: Kanjō-teki kabin**

**English translation: Emotional sensitivity**

**I know the translation was not needed but it felt incomplete without it lol)**

"So what I am saying is, I can sense emotions."

'Oh . . . that made sense.' He thought.

"Isn't it tiring for you to keep your shikai on for the whole session?" Ichigo asked.

Well keeping a shikai on for just an hour was as easy as breathing in _his_ future but he knew that people back then were very weak.

"Ah my zanpaktō's ability isn't anything special. It just senses emotions. It takes as much strength as reiatsu sensing but with a little more damage. I can basically keep it like this for as long as I want."

"Really? For how long has it been in shikai?"

"Hmm, I think it's been 4 years."

Ichigo waited for her to laugh.

She didn't.

"Chiyo baachan, are you serious? This isn't good for you at all! Your reserves will slowly deplete and you will die one da-"

"That's what I am planning to Ichigo."

Ichigo froze.

"_What?_ "

"I have been alive for too long child. Did you know that I am older than Yamamoto? You may think I am stupid for wishing to die but you will get it when you are olde-"

"_How can you even say something like that? _"

The woman's eyes widened at the sudden question. But what hit the chord more was the amount of betrayal his voice carried. It was as if he could not believe someone could fall this low.

Nozomi had long since jumped off his shoulder as she had sensed his distress and had taken a spot at the tree in front of them while Ichigo was now standing and 'glaring' at her through his bandages.

She felt herself getting more shocked she she realised that her ability had stopped working on him for a second. Even when he had been deflecting it just a minute ago, she had still been able to sense some emotions leak through.

But she hadn't met someone who could shut them off _completely _on command for a few seconds before letting them out all at once.

"Wha-"

"Everyone here cares about you and respects you to the point they don't think that you will even need protection from a potential spy. They admire your strength so much and they love you so much that it feels surreal. Each and every kid has its own grandma but somehow every clan kid I have met till now likes you better than their own. You have served the Shiba clan for so long and you have earned your right to rest peacefully damnit. And resting means that you let the others take care of you when you have done everything you could have. And what do you do? Try to kill yourself off slowly? Just because it's over and done? Just because you cannot do anything anymore?"

By the end of it Ichigo was breathing more harshly than before, not from the long and unstopping speech but because of his emotions. But he hadn't quite realised till now what he had done or said.

While on the other hand Chiyo was bedazzled at the fact that he had just scratched the surface of his pain when he had said all of this. She had felt it because of her shikai.

She had just touched the _borderline_.

She didn't even want to know what she would feel if she dug any deeper. This told her that there was way more burden on him than she previously had on mind.

She could not even _fathom_ what could be worse that what he is feeling right now.

But what could have set of such a reaction? All she saw in the boy since the last few months was nothing like what she had seen now. The usually shy, calm and collected boy was lecturing_ her_ instead and it seemed like this wasn't the first time he had lectured someone like her.

Someone who wants to give up.

She looked up and realised he was still standing there. But he had a look of realisation on his face which was mixed with a bit of fear. Realisation of what he had said and the small amount of fear of her opinion on his thoughts.

But there was something else there too.

Confidence.

A whole _lot _of confidence.

"You lose your concentration alot Chiyo sama." He said calmly.

But his tone held something indifferent. Something that made her look down on herself. It was mocking her. Something that made her feel like she can't even look into his eyes anymore even knowing that he is blind.

It made her feel weak.

"Go to your room brat."

She needed time to think and he needed to get out of there.

And they did just that.

* * *

Ichigo heard a small knock at his shoji door which was followed by a shy,

"Shiba san?"

Ichigo scowled lightly at being called by his given last name. Technically the clan had taken him in officially since the first day but he still preferred to be called by his real last name not the given one.

He heard her slide open the door and stand at the door frame, waiting for permission. He put down his pencil and closed the notebook with a sigh as he motioned the girl to sit on the cushion at the center of the room.

"Mizu . . . I told you to call me by my other last name or just Ichigo would have been fine." Ichigo said.

"But I still don't get why you want me to call you that when you have become a Shiba. You should actually be proud!" Mizu said with a huff as she sat down.

"Well how would you feel if you were suddenly shifted from the Shiba clan to the Kuchiki clan? What will you do if everyone called you Mizu Kuchiki instead?"

"That's- I guess, I would umm . . . Fine! You are right I guess." She said as she stubbornly pouted.

Ichigo shook his head and completely turned towards her to ask,

"Why are you here Mizu?"

The girl realised why she had come here in the first place as she threw a blue soft toy at Ichigo who caught it reflexively. Nozomi sniffed at the toy from his shoulder.

"Woah, nice catch Shiba san."

"Mizu-"

"Do you like the teddy bear?" She asked excitedly.

"Uhh, I cannot see it Mizu."

She rolled her eyes and said,

"But do you like how it feels at least?"

"It's nice I guess."

If Ichigo was being honest he didn't know that teddy bears were supposed to be nice and _not_ nice. He remembered buying Yuzu a black teddy with sharp teeth and she loved it. Heck she even loved Kon.

So what was the big deal about this teddy bear?

"This teddy bear is from last year's festival! I didn't visit but mom brought it for me! Isn't it amazing?!"

"To be honest I don't have much interest in teddy bears Miz-"

"Ugh fine, I was just here to ask if you wanted to come to the festival or not. It's today and only few people from the clan leave to visit it."

Now that caught his attention. He remembered each and every Shiba festival and none of them were in this month.

"What festival?"

"It's a recent one. They decided to make one somewhere around last year."

"What's it about?"

Mizu frowned and said,

"I already said it was just made last year, how would I know? So are you coming or not?"

Ichigo thought for a moment before saying,

"No, I will stay back here. I have some work."

"Really? Can't you come? Pleaseeeee? Even Kuzu is coming! Not only Kuzu but Ikumi san, Kukaku san and Ganju san are coming too!"

Well she just gave him more reasons for not coming.

"Sorry Mizu, I really am busy. Maybe next year?"

Mizu just huffed as she snatched the teddy bear away from his hands and stomped out of the room.

'That could have gone a bit better.' Ichigo thought but was soon interrupted by another presence.

"Brat, what are you up to? I just saw Mizu walk out of here as if you had just told her Santa wasn't real."

"He really isn't and no, I didn't tell her that."

"You know young kids like you are supposed to believe in Santa and things like monster under beds. But anyways what did you actually do?"

"I didn't do anything Ikumi san. She just wanted me to come to the festival that you all are going to visit today and i-"

"Refused? Like you did to everything else?"

Ichigo sighed and nodded, letting a bit of guilt slip into his posture.

Beside him Ikumi sighed as well as she sat down on Mizu's empty cushion. She stayed silent for a few minutes before saying,

"Even Chiyo was kinda out of it today. She was going to come with us at the festival but when I visited her after your zanpaktō session she looked like she hadn't slept in days. Her attitude was different too. I asked if her if she was coming and she said no. Does that have something to do with your session?"

" . . . Maybe?"

"You know that you will have to get out there sometime right? I mean, I see you talk with basically everyone nicely and I know you are not socially awkward in any way. So I just can't understand why you don't want to go out of the clan."

"I- I just don't want people to feel threatened by me."

Ikumi looked at him in confusion before snorting and saying,

"Brat, you are just a kid. Yeah you are kind of a prodigy in the medical field and know some stuff you shouldn't know about . . . but still, you are just a kid in the end."

Ichigo stayed took in the information and after some time before he turned back to his notebook and said,

"Next time Shiba san. I promise."

Ikumi stared at his back for some time, contemplating what she should do before gave up and said,

"Well I kinda knew this was going to happen. But I can't let you sit idle too."

"What do you mean?"

"You will take care of Kaoru while I am at the festival. I was planning to take Kaoru and Fuku with me so that she can help out. But Fuku needs a break and so do I. You take care of him. Are you okay with it?"

"Yeah, no problem."

"Good, then I will feed him before I go but you need to do all the other stuff like-"

"Changing the diaper, burping him, playing with him for 30 minutes and then putting him to sleep. I know that already." Ichigo said sounding offended.

"What's there to get mad about? I was just telling you what you need to do. Not all 10 year olds know how to do that ya know?" Ikumi said as she walked out of his room.

"Well I know because I already took care of my sisters when they were young. Even Rukia's kid when she wasn't around." Ichigo muttered to himself as he got back to writing.

* * *

"Okay kid we are going!" Ikumi said as she slid open Ichigo's door with a bang but stopped short when she saw him stir awake.

"Oh I am sorry, you were sleeping?" Ikumi added sheepishly as she saw Ichigo sit back up on the futon with a small scowl in place.

'Correction, I tried to.' He thought.

"Well I am awake now, I was just sleeping because you didn't come on time and I thought you guys were not going." He said as he scratched his head and got up.

"Why were you late anyways?" He added.

"Good cause we are leaving. Right. Now." Kukaku said as she ignored Ichigo's question and glared at Ikumi who was the cause of the delay.

Ikumi just sheepishly grinned and looked at Ganju to ask if he had taken everything that was needed but stopped when she saw the look of concern on his face. She followed his eyes and saw that he was looking at Ichigo while the boy himself was facing anything but them.

No.

He was facing anything but Ganju or Kukaku.

"Ikumi san?" Ganju asked as he noticed she was staring at him.

"Oh, It's nothing Ganju. Ichigo here, take Kaoru. I am pretty sure you can pick up his stuff from my room on your own." Ikumi said as she handed Ichigo the little bundle in her hands.

Ichigo held him comfortably as he smiled a bit, feeling his older brother instincts kicking in and shaking the kid gently so the baby would laugh.

Which he did.

"Well looks like he likes you Shiba san." Kuzu said with a hint of jealousy.

Ichigo frowned at Kuzu's use of identification but let it go. He wasn't the kid, Kuzu was. So there was no point in correcting him anymore.

"Well some people just have an affinity for kids ya know." Mizu said to her twin brother but even she was jealous.

"Well it could be because both of you have white hair. Most kids in the clan have black hair so maybe Kaoru feels that you guys are abnormal?" Fuku suggested to make the kids feel reassured.

"Shiba san literally has _orange _hair for Kami's sake! Orange! How can Kaoru be scared of white hair?" Mizu and Kuzu complained in unison.

"Let's just go brats!" Kukaku drawled as she dragged the two kids out of the room who complained the whole time.

Fuku and Ganju also left soon but not before Fuku had given Ichigo a large list of what he should and should not do. Ichigo didn't interrupt to tell her he already knew the stuff she was talking about. It would just make Fuku more mad at him.

Then in the end only Ikumi, Ichigo and Kaoru were left.

"Are you sure I should leave him with yo-"

"It's fine Shiba san. You deserve a break. Besides, you also had my burden on your shoulders for the last 11 months. Anyone would deserve a break from me."

Ichigo didn't know why he had said that. But he genuinely considered whatever he had said was true.

But it became clear Ikumi did not take that well.

"What the hell brat!"

Ichigo took a step back at the outburst, his hands automatically moving around Kaoru protectively.

'Maybe she didn't like me calling her Shiba san instead of Ikumi san?' He thought.

"What's wron-"

"Listen and listen good brat! You were not, are not and would _never_ be a burden. If anything you are our responsibility, Okay? We took you in and we respect you for what all you have done for this clan. If you hadn't done anything we still would have kept you just because you carry our name proudly. We would never abandon you in _any _situation, whatever the cost maybe. Got it?"

All he could do was nod dumbly as Ikumi gave a satisfactory smile and walked out.

That had been a bit . . . unexpected. Plus she had left him to think about something.

* * *

Ichigo adjusted the small crib in a corner directly opposite to his study table near the room lamp so that he could reach out to the baby easily. Then he propped in the covers, the bed and the kid's favourite toy inside the crib.

"Well do you like it Kaoru?" He asked as he 'looked' over his work.

Kaoru who was strapped on his back just giggled and Ichigo thought that was an approval. But when Ichigo gave the baby a small smile of his own and the baby burst out laughing so happily which was unlike Ichigo had ever seen him do.

"I know I don't smile much but that doesn't mean you react like that when I do brat." Ichigo said but his voice only held amuse from the scenario.

Then he slowly went over all the steps which included playing with the kid first.

He had honestly thought that 'running' behind the kid as it crawled all around the room while also pretending you can't catch up to him would be quite boring. But he found himself relaxing because this was the only thing he had done while not having to think what he could potentially reveal about himself.

But soon the excitement died down because when Ichigo stopped playing, Nozomi stopped playing with the kid too. The baby fox who had a habit of falling asleep early decided that she was done for the day. This of course made Kaoru cry and Ichigo had to stop the kid from doing so which took another 10 minutes.

'This is too much work for someone who doesn't know how to take care of kids. Did Ikumi san already know I could do that?' Was another doubt that was consistent at the back of his mind.

And after he had given Nozomi her food he had to feed Kaoru now and making him go to sleep was whole another challenge.

And damn was the kid stubborn as hell.

"Kaoru, you need to eat." Ichigo said again patiently as he held the small spoon in front of Kaoru.

The baby trapped in the highchair just pouted and looked away.

"You want to sleep don't you? We have played for an hour even though Shiba san had told me to play with you only for 30 minutes. That was more than enough time brat. Now, you and I can't sleep if you don't eat. So. Eat."

Kaoru's face just puffed up more clearly indicating that he was displeased with Ichigo for stopping their play session.

Ichigo could have easily let out some killer intent and the kid would have learned to walk if he said so. But no he wasn't a sadist. Besides he wouldn't want the _hidden _Shiba guard to think he was trying to kill the heir of the Shiba clan.

'And why is there only one Shiba guard today? Didn't they always assign three in my room?' He thought but set the topic aside for later thinking.

"You know what will happen if you sleep without eating?" Ichigo snarkily asked instead and saw the boy perk up.

So the kid at least understood basic Japanese.

Seeing that the baby was waiting for an answer he said,

"You will wake up and Ikumi san would try to force feed you."

He knew he could have chosen any other reason. Like 'monsters will show up' or 'you will have to stay in a dark room for the rest of your life', immature threats like that.

But why do that when the thought of Ikumi san force feeding you was terrifying enough?

He knew his reasoning had went in through the kid's head when the poor boy shakily started to lean in for the spoon Ichigo was holding.

'I will have to ask Ikumi san what she does to him for him to be this scared.' Ichigo thought as the kid kept eating the his small share of porridge.

"Now kid eat fast so that we can both catch some shut eye."

* * *

"Shiba san! Shiba saaaaaannn . . . " The servant trailed off as she heard Kaoru's small snores from inside Ichigo's room.

'Did both of them fall asleep already?' She thought.

She slowly opened the door a bit and saw that the kids indeed had fallen asleep. Ichigo was sitting at his small study in the far right corner and still had a braille book in his hands so she guessed he fell asleep while reading. She then looked towards the right side of the door and saw Kaoru sleeping peacefully in his crib with little Nozomi using her fluffy tail as a blanket for the baby.

She smiled at the peaceful sight before she entered the room as quietly as possible while also maintaing her distance from Ichigo. She had heard what the boy had done when Fuku had tried to wake him up on his first night.

'But he looks so weak and innocent, how did he do that anyways?' Had been her thought for the first few months but soon everyone, including her, got accustomed to his vast knowledge reserves. They just gave up on the idea of trying to get answers.

Besides at that time Fuku could have been caught off guard for all she knows.

She walked over to the crib and blew air over the lamp that was still lighting up the room. She then saw Kaoru smile in his sleep when Nozomi rested her paw on the boy's belly which instantly made her smile too.

'They are so cute!' She thought as she internally squealed.

But she turned around swiftly when she heard a hitch of breath from the table. She didn't walk over but she could see Ichigo's face that was contoured in slight disturbance. It was almost unnoticeable but it could have been seen if you are really looking.

'Did Ichigo have nightmares?'

But she knew that she was in no position to wake him up. The Shiba guard assigned here had probably seen her and would think she is trying to harm him if she tried to touch him. It was kinda ridiculous of the guards to actually think that right off the bat.

But she understood their reasons too. The recent disappearances of the clan members had set everyone on the edge. Plus the clan head had tightened the security.

She frowned but nonetheless walked over to the futon in the center of the room and picked up the blanket off it. Then she got to a safe distance of 0.5 meter from the boy and stretched her arms to rest the blanket over him.

She silently waited till she was sure he hadn't moved or was woken up in anyway. She almost sighed loudly when she saw he was still sleeping uncomfortably with his head on the cold desk.

'I seriously wonder how kids fall asleep in weird positions like that.' She thought as she slowly walked out the room and closed the shoji door with a soft click.

However she failed to notice the two paged braille letter that was lying on Ichigo's desk.

* * *

**REPLIES:**

**777torn777: I know right! It's just like him to solve the problems within the clan using his pranks XD**

**Bellator Kurosaki: The 'constantly having new ideas' is soooo me _everytime_ I write a fic lol. Thanks for liking the story and you are right about the hollow technique part, if he uses hollow techniques then he will have to give an explanation for it which he probably couldn't haha That's another reason why I sealed his reiatsu, so that he couldn't use the styles he already uses and will have to adapt to more different and difficult styles ; )**

**But the Kaien thing, Kaien died MANY years before Ichigo was even born. So currently Kaien isn't alive but kinda alive in that Aroneiro (I don't know the spelling lol) hollow : (**

**midnightscar17: Have patience : )**

**Tsunoyo: (I had to use Google translate to read it so don't mind if I reply something wrong) Thank you so much for following and reading my story!! I greatly appreciate it! And yes, I will keep writing more! : )**

**shazza085: (Reply on Ch-3's comment) I try my best to make it full of suspense, glad my work is paying off! : D**

**shazza085: (Reply on Ch-14's comment) I did ; )**


	16. Chapter 16

**I DON'T OWN BLEACH**.

**[**_SO HOW DOES CURRENT ICHIGO LOOK LIKE__? _**]**

**[I**** noticed I hadn't described how he looked after the time skip of 15 months lol so here it is~]**

**He still has his normal hairstyle except for his braid which for some reason still stayed the same height, thickness and everything and did not grow at all?? Another Easter egg maybe?? ; )**

**(He had argued with Fuku to not cut off his braid when she had called in a barber for the whole clan's haircut lol. Apparently there is a special haircut day for the clan)**

**Then he wears plain t-shirts ya know, nothing fancy or anything that has to do with designs, he doesn't like it. Just a plain white (or any other solid colour) t-shirt and some dark navy blue ankle length loose pants are enough for him.**

**He has white bandages wrapped around his head (not the top though) which cover his eyes and forehead. There are also some bandages wrapped around his wrists. They have two small hidden knives in them.**

**His sandals are his normal shinigami sandals. This was actually the only thing he had been allowed to keep with him after they had taken away his uniform.**

**His hair colour is still orange haha**

**His height is now 5'0 instead of 4'4 as you know he grows 1.5 centimetres per month.**

**[RANT IN THE END; You can ignore it if ya want cause it's not that important.]**

**Replies in the end too, Ciao~**

* * *

_"Kukaku san?" Ichigo asked as he watched the woman down another cup of sake._

_"What brat?" She grumbled as she poured herself another cup._

_Ichigo__ silently observed her, wondering if he should really ask what he was going to. He was kinda bothered by her showing up in his tent in the middle of the night just to sit down and get drunk._

_But he also knew he would have to be the one that had to ask this. He was practically her only family now._

_Because__ Ganju had died a month ago._

_"What is it brat? Spit it out!"_

_"Are you okay?"_

_She paused in mid sip as she stared at the cup on her hand before shaking her head with a chuckle she put down the cup on the small wooden table._

_"Look how we have ended up. You are taking care of me instead of me taking care of you. It should be the other way around considering I am older than you. Way older than you. I am the responsible adult here." She said as she crossed her arms and rested her back against the pole holding up the tent._

_"Yeah but it doesn't look like I need any help right now. I just . . . I want to make sure you are okay, you know? After what happened with her . . . " He didn't complete, she already knew who he was talking about._

_"I maybe kinda out of it brat but I ain't weak like her." She said with a scoff._

_Ichigo__ narrowed his eyes and said,_

_"She wasn't weak."_

_Kukaku stared at him before smiling softly as she said,_

_"Yeah, she wasn't. I am sorry."_

_There was a tense silence between them as they knew what conversation was going to be held next and both of them didn't like it._

_"So, why did you start drinking today? You didn't do that . . . even after the funeral." Ichigo __started._

_"I can drink whenever I want."_

_"But the question isn't 'why at all', it's actually 'why today'." Ichigo asked sharply knowing she won't take him seriously if he didn't do that._

_"Don't talk to me like that brat-"_

_Kukaku was cut off by Ichigo as he said,_

_"Please Kukaku san, Please just tell me because I need to make sure you are okay."_

_The said woman stared at him with a bit of shock because of how helpless the boy sounded._ _Ichigo never sounded like that. Not at least in front of her. So she gave him an honest answer . . . but only for today._

_"I just wanted to pass over this ya know? Like, I wanted to forget for once. I wanted this thing to be over for some time." She said as she got up and ruffled his hair._

_"Forget Ganju? Or the war?" He asked as Kukaku slowly made her way towards the tent's exit._

_"I don't know Ichigo. I guess everything." With that she walked out._

_And that day he had slept peacefully knowing that Kukaku would be okay._

_But he was wrong._

_"Ichigo!"_

_"Ichigo!"_

_"Damnit Ichigo wake up!"_

_"Kurosaki! KUROSAKI!"_

_Ichigo jolted awake with knives in his hands, ready to attack. But visibly relaxed when he saw Shuhei standing over the entrance of the tent._

_"What the fuck Shuhei? I was going to throw the knife-" He was cut off as Shuhei grabbed his arm and they ran out with a flashstep._

_He didn't say anything and let the guy drag him around because it looked like he was dead set upon showing him something._

_But then dread started to settle in his stomach when they neared Kukaku's tent._

_"Shuhei what's wron-"_

_Again Shuhei interrupted him and said,_

_"You need to see this. Not me."_

_They stopped directly inside the empty tent and but Ichigo scowled when he noticed how messy it was._

_'Does this woman ever clean her room?' He thought._

_"Today I came to wake her up because Cyan san was busy and I . . . found this." Shuhei said as he pointed to a small letter on Kukaku's makeshift bed._

_Ichigo looked at the paper as if it would jump over and kill him any second. He looked at it as if it was his worst enemy._

_"D-Did you look at it?" He asked._

_Shuhei looked down and shook his head._

_"I wanted to but it was addressed to you. So I ran over and because I had a bad feeling about it . . . " Shuhei trailed off with a half hearted shrug._

_Without another word Ichigo picked up the paper and opened it. It was nothing much it just had one sentence in it, someone could have mistaken it for a post it note._

_But that one sentence was enough._

**_"If you are reading this then I am sorry."_**

**_-Kukaku Shiba, 32nd Clan Head of the Shiba clan to Ichigo Kurosaki, 33rd Clan Head of the Shiba clan-_**

_'33rd Head of the Shiba clan my ass! Just wait until i-'_

_"Kurosaki Ichigo."_

_Shuhei and Ichigo swiftly turned around and saw Cyan Sung standing there solemnly. But the look she held was more terrifying._

_He knew that look too well._

_He had seen it too many times in this war._

_"Kurosaki Ichigo," This time she said it more softly as a lone tear dropped from her eye and she made no attempt to wipe it._

_"body of Kukaku Shiba was found at the end of Jōganji river."_

_She let the information sink in for a few seconds before she quietly added,_

_"By the looks of it . . . it was suicide."_

Ichigo's head shot up as he tried to look around for anything. Anything dangerous. Anything threatening. Anything . . . comforting.

But he was met with only darkness.

'Where the hel-' His fearful thoughts stopped the second he felt something soft brush against his arm.

He didn't attack it, he knew what is was and that it was safe. It was-

"Nozomi?" He heard the fox purr in response as she sat down in his lap with her tail still woven around his arm comfortably.

"It's just you." He said and relaxed as the fear left his body.

"It's _just_ you." He repeated and the sentence held a different meaning this time.

He rested his head back on the cold wooden desk as he thought,

'I shouldn't have fallen asleep in the first place.'

Suddenly he realised that he had actually fallen asleep on the desk instead of his futon and sighed.

He didn't even remember falling asleep. So maybe his body must have been at the brink of exhaustion.

'What time is it anyways?'

He lifted Nozomi up and rested her on his shoulder as he got up and walked over to the verandha door to open it and walk outside.

'It's pretty cold out here . . . I would say it's around 2 AM right now.'

That's when he sensed that something was wrong. Not wrong exactly, but different.

Kukaku, Ganju, Mizu, Kuzu, Fuku and Ikumi were still not back. He couldn't even sense them _near_ the compound's vicinity.

'Weird . . . wait, didn't someone give me a letter before I went to sleep? It was in braille too.'

* * *

"P-Please do-don't do this! Spare me-" The servant's cry was stopped short as a knife was thrown into her throat with precision.

Then the knife was surrounded by a dim purple glow which started spreading over the servant's body. Within a span of few seconds she turned into a bright flash of purple light before her body fell forward while the flesh around her skeleton was sucked in like a rasin.

"My my how loud~" The assasin said as he pulled out the slightly purple knife from the dead body and walked out the door.

* * *

"Kukaku saaaannnnnn~" Kuzu whined as he pulled on Kukaku's dress.

"What?" She asked, annoyed.

"It's literally past midnight Kukaku san!" Kuzu said as he flailed his smalls arms around.

Mizu nodded enthusiastically as she agreed with her brother and said,

"Ganju is sleeping below a tree at the festival's entrance, Fuku san looks like she is ready to pass out and even me and Kuzu are tired and it's_ very _cold! Can't we just go back?"

Kukaku sighed as she looked back at the main festive grounds and said,

"We could have if Ikumi was done playing around."

Mizu and Kuzu turned their heads towards the playground where Ikumi and several others were dancing and drinking around and the twins glared as hard as they could.

"You know that glaring won't do anything right? I have been asking her to stop for a hour but she just won't listen." Kukaku said.

"T-Then what about Fuku san? Did she try to convince her? Ikumi san usually listens to Fuku san." Kuzu suggested.

Kukaku's eyes widened as she stared at Kuzu like he had just told her the meaning of life.

"Why didn't I think about this earlier?!" She asked, already on her way to where Fuku was standing-sleeping.

"I don't know, maybe because Fuku san looked like she could pass out any second?" Mizu said dryly.

* * *

Chiyo, still clad in her nightly yukata held her zanpaktō in her hand tightly as she stared at the man in front of her. She couldn't see much in the dark but the teared up shoji door was letting in enough moonlight to pick up on some things.

The first thing she could tell was that he was trained well even if it clashed with his lazy form. Besides, she knew that no one will send an untrained assasin to the previous head of the Shiba clan

Old or not, she could kill.

"Who are you?" She firmly asked.

"Don't be so cautious woman, you won't even see me again after a few minutes." The man said as he took a single step forward.

"Because you will be dead." He continued.

Even though she couldn't see his face she knew he was smiling underneath his mask. He then proceeded to unsheathe his tantō from the black sheath on his back.

"I am not the best trained one from my group but I am sure I can kill you. Even if I can't, then someone else who is better would do it." He added.

She scoffed.

"Don't take me so lightly boy." She warned.

"Oh don't worry, I won't~"

He took another step forward and that's when everything went into motion.

He had been hoping to get her killed in one shot. Just how he had planned. But it turns out he wasn't fast enough to handle the attacks. He wasn't even able to see them coming.

And three strikes, that's all it took to take the man down.

One over his right kidney, one on his throat and one behind his knee. The man fell down on the ground limply as the tantō landed precisely an inch away from Chiyo's feet.

She then sighed as she said,

"You know, I could have done that by myself-"

She looked up,

"-Ichigo."

The said boy was crouched on the ground, stretching his legs to make sure his kicks were swifter and unlike the ones he had used a few seconds ago. He shrugged and wondered if his original stretching routine wasn't enough for this small body.

"No you couldn't have." He still replied without missing a beat.

The woman scowled, not even fazed by his sudden appearance but definitely irritated at his downplay of her skills.

"Why is that?"

"The trick is to not get sliced by his blade. It absorbs energy from your body basically making you look like a dried rasin. Oh and also dead." He said and picked up the tantō and it's sheath.

"You were planning to get nicked with it just so that you had a clean shot at his neck didn't you?" He asked dismissively.

"A little scratch would have been nothing if it was a normal blade. It's not like I knew what the blade did. How did you know about it anyways?" She asked as she casted a Bakudō that tied the man down completely.

"I saw a dead body but that assasin got away before I knew about him."

"There are more?" She asked, now a little concerned.

"Yes and apparently they are targeting randomly. So I am assuming everyone is in danger." He then threw the sheathed blade towards her as she caught it.

"Keep this blade and this guy here. Don't lose any of them. Make sure he doesn't have any suicide techniques on him." He said as he stretched his arm one last time.

"What are you going to do?" She asked.

"I am going to visit Bunzō sama and tell him about the situation and then I will scout the whole compound." Ichigo asked.

"What if you are just a spy? How do I know you aren't the one who had planned all this?" She asked sharply.

He paused in his musings and turned towards her. For a second he did nothing and she thought he was mocking her decision making capabilities again but then he just went back to work and said,

"You don't. But I don't think you sent that warning letter to me just because you didn't trust me right?"

Chiyo sighed. He wasn't wrong.

She had sent that letter to him because she wanted him to be prepared. She had sensed alot of killer intent around the compound today (because of her Shikai) so she had wanted him and Kaoru to be safe in case something did happen.

Indirectly stating that if she trusted him with the future head of the Shiba clan, she also _did_ trust him as a person.

"Besides," He continued, "I think you can pretty much guess what my intentions are from your _shikai_."

The way he said shikai made her wince.

"I stopped using it an hour ago."

She was hoping that the little boy would appreciate that she did.

She also wished to dull his own pain because in their last session it had looked like she had struck a nerve which wasn't supposed to be struck.

But it didn't have the desired effect and he just said,

"I didn't have much time to do it myself so can you figure out how that sword actually does what it did?"

The woman scowled at her answer being ignored but she knew she had more important matters.

Even though she knew Ichigo was capable of fighting but for some reason it still irked her that no one else was able to see that in him. Not a single damn person in the whole compound. Not even their trained Shiba fighters. Not even the current head of the clan.

Or they did know but just didn't speak out loud?

But could this boy really protect himself that well or was she just overpraising his skills?

These questions weighed heavily on her mind.

"Well it was pretty obvious what it did. It absorbs reiatsu." She answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Ichigo paused on his way out the door.

"What?"

"It absorbs reiatsu." She stated again but loudly.

"Damnit." Was all Ichigo whispered as he practically vanished from her room.

When she tracked him she sensed that he was running towards his own room instead of Bunzō's like he had originally planned.

But what made her contemplate deeply was the fact that first she had thought that he had flashstepped out of here.

But no, he was just that fast on his feet.

"Guess I won't have to worry about him after all. But it's the aftermath of all this that concerns me the most . . . "

* * *

The assassin's eyes held a vicious glint as he stared at the translucent yellow box that was covering the crib. The heir of the Shiba clan and the fox, Nozomi, slept peacefully inside, unaware of the happenings outside.

"Heh, a 'special case'? That brat ran away as soon as he heard that servant yell." He said as he held his knife over the field and it slowly started dissipating, getting absorbed by it.

His smile widened as the Bakudō disappeared completely and Nozomi and Kaoru were now exposed to the cold night air.

Just a second before his knife could touch the baby he heard something behind him. He took a quick step back and turned to look around the room.

"What the-"

"Hey." A voice said.

He turned back around only to have his nose squashed from a well forced punch.

He dropped his knife to get ahold of his broken nose but soon realised his mistake. Ichigo took that opportunity within a second and pushed the heel of his right palm right into the man's solar plexus making the guy fall flat down on the floor. But Ichigo didn't stop there, he then cupped both of his hands and struck the assassin's ears with them, successfully making the man deaf for hours.

Before Ichigo could do anything else he heard something shuffle behind him. He turned around swiftly only to find Nozomi climbing down from the crib. He relaxed his posture and let the fox climb on his shoulder and then went towards the crib.

Kaoru was now awake and was wondering what the small thud from earlier was. His wandering eyes latched onto Ichigo and he giggled which made Ichigo give the baby a small smile of his own.

'Karin used to laugh just like that.' Ichigo thought as he picked the baby up.

He then sighed as he realised that this timeline's soul society didn't have the modern baby slings and he had to make a baby sling himself. It wasn't hard to make but it sure was troublesome.

"Okay now Kaoru, I am going to tie you to my back and hopefully you don't mind. But make sure not to cry and stay silent okay?" Ichigo quietly whispered.

He didn't know if the baby understood or not but he was silent the whole time Ichigo was tying him to his back with the white cloth so he took that as a yes.

He then looked at Nozomi who was on his shoulder and said,

"You should go to the forest Nozomi. I already put a tracking seal on you after that forest incident. I will find you afterwards, okay?"

The fox sniffed the air twice as if she was saying yes and then ran off from the garden door that was teared up when the assassin had entered.

Ichigo was glad that he had actually trained Nozomi a bit because he wouldn't know what to do with her at a time like this. He couldn't carry two on his back. Not yet at least.

He had almost walked out of the room but then sighed again as he picked up the knife that was embedded near his feet and threw it behind him.

Ichigo pretended to not hear the gurgling of blood from the man's throat as he walked out and closed the door.

* * *

Sounds of wooden plates being hit loudly rang around the seireitei as all the sleeping shinigami were woken up from their slumber.

Everyone knew what that sound meant. It was a declaration of emergency.

Shunsui groaned as he got up from his bed and walked over to his garden door which he had left open for the night and saw the blue coloured fire works that were currently dominating the sky.

'What in the world-'

"Captain!"

Shunsui turned around and saw Nanao standing there huffing, clearly indicating she had ran over as fast as she could.

And somehow he knew whatever it was, it had something to do with those fireworks and the emergency signal.

"What happened?"

Nanao stood firmly as she relayed the message,

"Those fireworks are made specifically by the Shiba clan and can only be used by their higher authorities. They fire this specific blue one only in emergencies or when they need immediate help."

Shunsui didn't need to be told twice and he was already on his way to another room to get changed. After he was done both of them flashstepped out of squad 8 barracks and were on their way towards squad 1.

* * *

Ichigo had been searching all around the compound but was still unable to find where the Shiba guards went. Not only were the outside guards missing but also the ones who 'hide'in the shadows were missing too.

He knew some of them were traitors considering that two from his own room were too.

But he also knew that the loyal ones were alive. He could feel their reiatsu. It's just that someone had made a barrier around them that dissipated their spiritual pressure throughout the compound.

He stopped for a second as he turned behind to check on Kaoru again. The boy looked like he was having the time of his life flying around. Plus the fact that the kid actually _laughed_ whenever Ichigo killed or immobilised the assassins was getting creepy.

He then remembered how all the workers and members had behaved when he had saved them.

**-Flashback-**

_Ichigo huffed as he rested his hands on his knees, tired from running around all this time._

_He then 'looked' up to meet the faces of the clan members he had managed to save. Which were many considering he thought that this was how the clan had 'vanished'._

_But then he realised something._

_He had saved Chiyo from dying because of that __tantō._

_Chiyo had started the fireworks which in turn woke everyone up._

_Everyone waking up caused them to fight against the assassins instead of getting killed in their sleep._

_Most were able to handle them because the clan had amazing fighters and some even managed kill their assassins._

_The decreased number of assassins made it easy for the clan members to help each other out and survive better._

_That was one huge butterfly effect._

_He then felt all of their eyes were on him and he sensed something in all of the clan members' reiatsu._

_Worry._

_Worry for him._

_"Ichigo san we can help you ou-'" A man started but Ichigo cut him off quickly._

_"No, this will only make it harder for me to fight. Not because you are weak but because it will be hard to move around stealthily with many people." Ichigo explained as politely as he could._

_"Bu-"_

_"I know you guys are worried but don't be. I am actually first going to search for the remaining guards that are locked up somewhere inside the compound so they could help me."_

_This seemed to relieve them for now as murmurings began to run around with what they could and could not do._

_But he was kind of surprised that no one questioned him about how he hid his capabilities. Was he that obvious? Was he that easy to read? Or did he fool only Ikumi, Fuku, Mizu, Kuzu, Bunzō while all the others already kind of knew?_

_He decided to worry about that later._

_"Ichigo, at least give Kaoru to us." A lady pleaded, worried about the child._

_The woman who had said that was someone Ichigo knew well. Rika was the one that had been giving him normal clothes since he had started living here._

_Ichigo had almost handed Kaoru to her, the baby was inches away from the lady's hands but that was also when he felt it._

_Killer intent._

_It was so little that it could have been easily dismissed. If he hadn't gone through 9 years of war then maybe he wouldn't have sensed it today._

_But Ichigo knew that it wasn't the fact that the amount was little, it was the fact that it was heavily repressed__ that made him immediately take a step back_ _and__ snatch away the white bundle before it could even touch the woman's fingers._

_"Wha-"_

_"Listen everyone!" He announced without wasting another second._

_The murmurings died down and he said_,

_"As you know that there were traitors among the Shiba guards. So you couldn't be sure that there weren't any among the normal members."_

_No one spoke up as they realised what the depth of the situation really was._ _Someone among them could really be looking for their blood._

_"So I am going to take Kaoru with me."_

_Some started complaining without missing a beat, clearly worried about the future clan head but Ichigo interrupted them by saying,_

_"If I wanted to then I could have killed Kaoru the second everyone had fallen asleep."_

_The silence later was deafening._

_"So I want you guys to be on guard. Don't accuse each other but just be on guard."_

_After a minute had passed he heard some hesitant replies but was thankful that all of them had agreed._

_He tied Kaoru on his back again and he could almost feel the woman in front of him was sneering with anger at his doing._

_So now he was even more sure that she was a traitor_.

_"Please don't open the door till you hear my voice. I don't want a single one of you to die."_

_It must have been something to do with his almost pleading tone or how helpless he sounded because after a few seconds of nothing he instantly felt everyone release their warmest and most comforting spiritual pressure possible which was followed by all of them giving him small assurances like "Of course we won't die! We are Shiba!", "You will come back to us alive too!", "Do you think we Shiba are so weak?", "We want you back safe and sound okay? No breaking rules!"_ _and "You will have to come back or else we will have to stay here forever ya know~"._

_He gave them a smile which made them grin too_.

_Then he was off._

**-Flashback end-**

He had told all the Shibas to hide in a single room and the room was none other than the underground emergency escape room that only the royal family knew about.

He knew he shouldn't even _know_ about a place like this but there was no other place safer than that room considering that most of the Shiba guards were traitors.

"Bah bah!" Kaoru suddenly exclaimed.

Ichigo swiftly 'looked' behind and made shushing noises at Kaoru only for him to continue doing that.

"What do you want . . . " Ichigo trailed of as he saw Kaoru reach for one of the closet doors.

"What do you sense there Kaoru? You aren't even supposed to be sensing spiritual pressure at this age." Ichigo whispered but opened the door anyways.

And he was glad he did.

* * *

Fuku, Ikumi and Ganju stared at the blue fireworks in horror as Mizu and Kuzu looked at them, worried. The twins were too young to know about this.

"Ikumi san, what's wron- Ah!" Mizu started hesitantly but was cut off as she and Kuzu were picked up by Ganju.

"Wait at least tell us what's wrong you guys!" Kuzu yelled as he squirmed under Ganju's arms.

But they didn't get a response as Ganju, Ikumi and Fuku darted off towards the clan's direction.

* * *

It took Ichigo a while to break the kidō barrier. If he had his original spiritual pressure (the one he had at war) then just looking at the darned thing would have broken it down.

But of course he couldn't do that so he had to break the seal the old school way.

He wiped the sweat off his brow as he muttered the spells and his hands worked through the seal's required for the Bakudō but in reverse order.

The guards inside the barrier who were tied down were looking at the boy with anticipation and wonder. They were excited to get out and help but they were also astonished by how the boy was working through the Bakudō spells and seals as if he had done it a thousand times before.

'And the fact that he is doing all this while being blind.' One of the guards thought.

The normal Shiba guards weren't that shocked in his Kidō affinity as they had suspected he must have some kind of hidden knowledge besides Kaidō but the shadow guards were so surprised that it was visible even if they only had their eyes uncovered.

**(Kaidō: It's healing kidō but I didn't know that it had a name in the earlier chapters haha)**

While he was breaking the barrier Ichigo was deep in his own thoughts.

He was still wondering why did the ones who weren't around him all the time had suspected that he had abilities besides healing Kidō but the ones who _were_ around him all the time _didn't_ suspect anything.

It was so contradictory that it didn't make sense.

Ichigo then turned back and asked,

"How are you holding up Kaoru?"

He didn't expect the boy to reply in anyway but he knew he had to do something for Kaoru because he couldn't even _see_ and being inside a hot closet for the more than 10 minutes wasn't something a baby should go through.

But for some reason Ichigo heard the baby giggle and slap his chubby arms at his face.

"Well you sure are doing good huh?" Ichigo asked, a bit amused.

'There is no way in hell this baby is normal. He doesn't even _flinch_ when I kill someone. Heck he actually laughs?' Ichigo thought grimly as he continued on his work.

Then before anyone could have realised it, the barrier was broken.

The guards and Ichigo sighed in relief as they slumped down on the cold floor for a minute before getting themselves together. Then after sometime all of their ropes and gags were removed and they were free.

"I assume you guys know what is happening?" Ichigo asked.

One of the guard group leaders stepped forward and said,

"We have a vague idea but care to give us a summary?"

Ichigo nodded and said,

"Shiba clan has traitors, mostly soldiers and they are trained assassins. They are stronger than you considering the fact that they jumped you _and_ captured you at the same time."

All of them nodded.

"They were going to wipe out the Shiba clan but Chiyo baachan warned me before something worse could have happened. I helped as many people as I could and now majority of the clan members are at a safe place. There might be some I missed if they decided to hide because they couldn't fight back."

Again all of them nodded.

"We will be getting reinforcements from seireitei soon so all we have to do is take care of the assassins and make sure they don't harm anyone. Stay in pairs, that reduces the chances of someone getting harmed if there are any more traitors and also gives better chances at winning against them. Is this much clear?"

The tone of authority and finality in his voice made all the guards straiten up and reply with a sharp 'Yes!' and after a few seconds they were left wondering why they replied to a kid like that.

"Don't forget to stay away from their weapons at all costs. One small nick from it and you die. It absorbs spiritual pressure completely. I don't know why they are collecting reiatsu but i am sure it's not something good."

The guards tensed, realising that the traitors could have killed them while kidnapping them if they wanted to.

But that raised another question, why didn't they do that in the first place?

"I know what you guys might be thinking and to be honest I don't know either. But right now saving the clan is our priority." Ichigo said firmly and again he was responded with many sharp 'Yes!'.

Ichigo then raised his hand towards the back of his head and pulled on the two long strips of white bandages. Then he undid the knot and let the bandages fall back on the ground.

The guard who was with him when he had visited Unohana on his first day raised an eyebrow at that.

"Ichigo san if I remember correctly then you were told not to remove-" The guard started but Ichigo cut him off and said,

"It's alright, just trust me on this. Even if my eyes bleed it will be fine."

Well that did nothing but make the guard even more worried.

Ichigo then opened his eyes and started using his _seeing_ technique. He was sure he was going to need to use this today.

The guard who had spoken up looked at Ichigo with some sort of sympathy and worry which only intensified when he looked into the child's visible amber eyes.

The eyes were too old. Too worn out.

Something a _10 year old_ shouldn't have.

They were dull and lifeless. Even the oldest of blind people he had seen had some sort of light in their eyes but this child had nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

He looked around and noticed that the other guards were drawn into the sight too.

Suddenly Kaoru giggled again and their complete attention was brought to the baby instead.

"Ichigo san, what are you going to do?" One of the female guards asked.

"Me? I am going to fight too of course." Ichigo stated blandly as he wrapped the removed bandages around his right ankle.

"What?! Ichigo san you have Kaoru with you and absolutely no fighting experien-"

"Says who?" He asked as he looked at them.

"What do you mea-"

"How do you think I placed majority of the clan at a safe location while assassins were running around the compound?" He asked with light sarcasm.

"You can fight?" She asked, astonished. But her voice was muffled.

Ichigo realised that she must be a shadow guard. They usually only leave their eyes viable to the outside word.

"Yes I can and I can do it better than you." Ichigo replied, sounding mildly offended.

And he wasn't being cocky either. His hand to hand combat skills in his current state might be bad in future war times but it was better than _anyone_ in seireitei right now. Except maybe Yourichi might be on par with him.

But they didn't need to know that.

Some Shiba guards and shadow Shiba guards wanted to scoff but they also knew that they were defeated by the assassins who Ichigo had fought and gotten out without a scratch.

"Fine then, let's say we believe you for a second Ichigo but what about Kaoru? You aren't going to fight with him on your back right?" The lady asked.

"Kaoru stays with me. I don't know if there are any more traitors in the remaining Shiba guards and i am not taking any risks.

"But who said you could-"

"Before Ikumi san left for the festival she had left Kaoru's protection under my command."

"But Ichigo how do we know we can trust you?" The woman retorted.

"Well Kaoru is still alive isn't he?" He said, a bit irritated.

"Yeah but-"

Ichigo suddenly turned towards them and stared at them with his dull brown eyes as he tried his best to not glare. But that sure didn't stop him from releasing heavy killer intent on them.

"_I said, Kaoru stays with me. Do I make myself clear? _"

The guards felt their mouths dry up and their knees buckle under their own weights but they still somehow knew they were standing. The world just seemed like a void around them that was filled with voices.

Heck they couldn't even look into Ichigo's eyes anymore even while knowing he was blind.

Never in their lives had they experienced killer intent so strong that it could make spiritual pressure look like _trash_.

"_Do i?_ " Ichigo asked again.

"Cry-Crystal." The woman finally stammered out.

"Good."

And with that, the killer intent was gone and all of them tried to pick themselves back up which they found was a hard task.

Ichigo noticed that and of course had apologized afterwards which made them relax a bit more and soon they were preparing to head out of the closet.

"Hey, do you guys have a weapon? Not as long as a Katana, i won't be able to use stealth but not as short a a tantō too, it doesn't suit me." Ichigo asked suddenly.

Some of them started asking among themselves when suddenly a normal guard stepped ahead and with a wide grin stated,

"I have just the weapon for ya kid!"

* * *

"Which squad is responsible for Shiba clan's safety?" Shunsui asked as he pushed more reiatsu into his legs to jump over the roofs faster.

"Squad 10 has been responsible for Shiba clan's safety since the last century." Nanao informed, confused at how Shunsui wouldn't know something like that.

"I see, I thought they might have changed it." Shunsui said thoughtfully as he held his chin.

Nanao raised an eyebrow at that and asked,

"Any specific reason why squad 10 has been their protection for so long or why you thought they might have changed it?"

Shunsui shook his head with a fond smile and said,

"Most squad 10 captains throughout history have been Shibas. The last one was a good friend of mine, Isshin Shiba. But one day that idiot just went missing so his 1st seat was appointed as the captain instead. Poor Toshiro had to deal with him and Matsumoto all together."

"Captain Hitsugaya?" She asked knowingly as they jumped over another roof.

"Yup. Matsumoto was Isshin's lieutenant and is currently Toshiro's lieutenant because Toshiro had a bankai and was pretty much a prodigy but she wasn't." Shunsui said.

"I don't think they would have let her become a captain even with a bankai just because of her drinking habits." Nanao muttered as she remembered all the times Rangiku had showed up at duty piss drunk.

Shunsui chuckled lightly and soon both of them fell silent, knowing that they were worried about the same thing deep inside.

"Captain-"

"I know Nanao. But we can't do anything without old man's orders."

"But still, do you think that . . . "

Was Ichigo okay?

* * *

Ichigo came to the conclusion that the situation was, in fact, _not okay_.

He thrusted the heel of his palm at the guy's chin as the assassin's neck snapped into an uneven angle and he fell down limply.

Ichigo then looked up and sighed as he felt something all too familiar (from his timeline) in Bunzō's reiatsu.

"Oh you have gotta be kidding me . . . " He muttered as he 'stared' at Bunzō.

Bunzō on the other hand was shakily holding his zanpaktō in his hands, pointing it towards Ichigo. His eyes were too wide and he was sweating profusely.

And it was obvious that he was not in control of his body.

"I-I thought that maybe they would leave us a-alone if I let them put that se-seal on me b-but now th-they are attacking us and you are killi-"

"Bunzō sama, I know that whatever I will do now will make you think that it is a threat. But understand when I say that I am on _your_ side. This guy, the one lying in front of you, the one I just killed, was going to attack you. I did not kill someone from the clan, it was an assassin." Ichigo explained calmly but internally he knew that the assassin was probably a traitor too.

But that didn't matter now.

He didn't know what Bunzō was feeling like. He couldn't even see the clan head's face. Even with his seeing eyes he could only make out blue figures and silhouettes.

So he decided to take a step forward just to test the waters.

Well, wrong move.

Without warning Bunzō raised his arms and yelled,

"Hadō 4: Byakurai!"

Ichigo jumped out of the way only for Bunzō to continue firing more Byakurais. It didn't seem to affect Bunzō that the compound was getting completely destroyed because of this.

'He is too out of it.' Ichigo confirmed.

The blasts wouldn't have affected Ichigo too if they weren't attracting any attention. Especially attention from the assassins.

After a few more strikes Ichigo decided that he had enough and said,

"Bakudō 81: Danku."

The big rectangular transparent shield covered his front as he walked forward. He easily pushed behind the aftereffects of using Kidō with his reiatsu less body to the back of his mind. Pain was something he didn't need right now and he had enough practice to know how to discard it.

Bunzō's eyes widened more and more as he saw Ichigo inching closer. He decided to prepare an attack pattern using his zanpaktō but before he could do anything else he heard Ichigo mutter these words,

"Shiba-shi Hanabi Inkan Sanjūni: Kaijō."

The small lavender coloured diamond appeared on Ichigo's forehead, allowing him access his stored spiritual pressure and without wasting another second Ichigo said,

"Bakudō 61: Rikujokoro."

6 bright yellow rods of light connected at Bunzō's waist and held held him in place while also restricting him from using any spiritual attacks.

"Wait-"

"Bakudō 1: Sai!"

Bunzō fell down on the ground, unable to move his body.

"Bakudō 73: Tozansho!"

An inverted and translucent blue pyramid formed around around the head of the Shiba clan as he was lying on the ground, unable to move or use any of his reiatsu.

Ichigo took shallow breaths as he tried to straightened up and coughed as he waved his arms around to get rid of the smoke and dust. Then be looked at his Kidō work with a calculative gaze to make sure it didn't have any weak points.

"I am sorry I had to do this. I am in no position to fight someone as strong as you with my current reiatsu reserves." Ichigo said as he faced the clan head who was looking at him with the same fearful expression.

"Plus, There was no other way to remove that seal off you right now. You would have to stay completely still, which is only possible if you are unconscious." Ichigo added.

Then suddenly he felt his body tense up. He was sensing something under the room's rubble. He looked around the room again with his _seeing_ eyes.

He then sighed.

"I know you are there, come on out." Ichigo muttered into the destroyed room.

Without warning 5 figures dressed just like the other assassins flashstepped into the room.

"This is the 'special kid'? Seriously?" One of them asked.

"Well he _is_ wearing clothes Rika made isn't he?" Other responded.

Ichigo took a mental note that Rika was the one he thought was a traitor too and apparently . . . he wasn't wrong.

So the doubts he first had about Rika's stitching method just for _his_ clothes really had some backbone. Also the fact that she made normal clothes only for him.

'I should have looked more into this . . . but what can I do now anyways.' He thought dismissively.

"And didn't you see what he did? Leave the clothes, looking at his Kidō skills I think we should tread carefully too." Another one said, it was a woman this time.

"Let's just kill him off and run. We failed the mission anyways. The seireitei reinforcements will be here in a while." Other added lazily.

"Well what do _you _say?" the first one asked and all of them could almost_ hear_ the assassin smiling.

Ichigo in turn just shrugged in response as he unsheathed the ninjatō strapped horizontally on the back of his waist. He touched the edge of the blade with his finger and gave a small satisfied smile when he felt blood pool at the fingertip.

'At least it's as sharp as a zanpaktō.' He thought.

"Should we kill you off kid?" The first one asked again.

"I don't know, but I think I can give you a few tries to get the basics down."

* * *

**REPLIES:**

**shazza085: You're welcome! : D**

**Bellator Kurosaki: Hmm well you think just like grandma Chiyo haha XD And man you predicted the fighting part too : ( I guess I will have to fill up some more plot twists ; ) And about Ichigo's style, as you may have noticed I like simplicity and hence Ichigo's style in this story is simple too, plain t-shirts, dark blue loose pants? I know plain but I love it : ( And I prefer Ichigo with short hair (TYBW hair) and I have to keep it short for the plot too as you may have read that braid has some plot to itself ; )**

**XxxgoblinslayerXD69: Have patience ; ) And his growth isn't that slow, read the note in the start to know how he currently looks like : D**

**777torn777: Well now you know what happened to the Shiba clan XD**

**Eternal Love's Eclipse: Aww thank you so much!! This is the first time someone has complimented my progression so it's very important to me! And you give correct advice too!! Also, I do have a plot so don't worry ; ) If you read all my before/after chapter notes then I have mentioned something about Easter eggs that will help you guess the plot in the future!!!**

**Thanks for replying again and tell me if you find any Easter eggs cause not a single person has found any till now haha XD**

**kevban: Vous êtes les bienvenus! Voici le nouveau chapitre! :) Au fait, ne vous méprenez pas si ce français est faux, j'ai dû utiliser Google Translate haha Je voulais juste essayer ça XD**

**corjca 1: Dude I don't give a fuck, you just wasted your own time in writing those hate comments ngl**

**[Rant???/Only important to those who REALLY want Ichigo to gain his powers back.]**

**I see some of you guys are wondering when Ichigo will go back to his original form. Well you could say . . . I don't know? To be honest I have a story plot in my mind but I change it along the way to make the story better. Like the arc of Ichigo going to Hueco Mundo to kill the half arrancar? That was a decision I had made on spot. But it was necessary one too. How else do you think Ichigo could have gone to Hueco Mundo? With Gotei 13 watching his every move? Hell no.**

**For now he will not get his complete powers back because what will be the fun if he could just one shot everyone there? He will grow up to his full height after 3 years. One year and 3 months have already passed so he is around 5'0 now! Yes, he is getting back to his original body but slowly.**

**So those who are worried that Ichigo is staying a kid for so long don't worry. It's just I am kinda lazy so I don't announce every time he gets tall. Plus he will grow tall very fast because of Kisuke's solution which has already been explained in the old chapters.**


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